After the war, which has been raging for years, is about to end, it seems that the process of repatriating Syrian refugees from Lebanon to their home country is now in the interests of some Lebanese parties.

He points out that Lebanon was one of the countries in which the Syrian refugees had poured heavily, and that Lebanon was affected by this flow politically, socially and economically.

While the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is committed to ensuring the safety of returnees to Syria, the effectiveness of its work is severely tested by the interests of some Lebanese parties.

The Lebanese government estimates that the Syrian refugees in the country are about 1.5 million refugees, who live in difficult and harsh conditions in camps in the Bekaa Valley or the popular neighborhoods, and are subjected to various kinds of racist attacks and practices on a daily basis.

Lebanese government adopts series of measures to increase suffering of Syrian refugees (Reuters)

Procedures and suffering
"Since 2014, the Lebanese government has adopted a series of measures that have made it difficult for Syrian refugees to obtain legal residency permits, without which it is impossible to obtain public services, work or birth certificates.

The Syrian children face tragic conditions, 75 percent of whom do not go to school, and there is widespread child labor among them.

At the same time, there is growing discontent amongst the Lebanese, and refugees are often referred to as the main cause of the tragic economic situation that "forces the whole country to kneel."

The issue of refugees in Lebanon is very sensitive because of the interests of various parties in the country.

Some Lebanese and Shiite elites feel threatened by the possibility of a Sunni majority with the presence of refugees (French)

Threat and coercion
Most Syrians who arrived in Lebanon are Sunni Muslims, and this is an unwelcome aspect of the Christian and Shiite elites, who in turn feel threatened by the possibility of a Sunni majority, while parties such as the Free Patriotic Movement and Hezbollah are facilitating the return of Syrian refugees Or forced to do so.

He adds that Hezbollah has expressed its desire to benefit from the excellent relations it has with the head of the Syrian regime Bashar al-Assad to allow Syrian refugees to return.

According to the writer, with the approval of President Michel Aoun and his party, the Free Patriotic Movement, Hezbollah began cooperating with the Lebanese intelligence agency and the Damascus government to establish centers to manage the process of returning the refugees.

He points out that Hezbollah is in fact pursuing political objectives for its own interests and allies (Iran and Syria), facilitating the return of some refugees to Syria, but not to their original areas, but to Idlib and Aleppo.

Syrian authorities seek to block UNHCR efforts on security and voluntary return of refugees (European)

Distribution and obstruction
The author says Hezbollah aims to distribute the refugees in strategic areas in a way that does not include any Sunni enclaves in the so-called "Shiite crescent," which runs from Tehran to Beirut via Baghdad and Damascus.

In the meantime, the UN Commission is working to ensure the safe and voluntary return of Syrians in Lebanon through interviews and surveys and monitoring their return to border areas.

Although the United Nations continues to stress that the current Syrian situation is not safe enough to allow refugees to return, Lebanese Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil sees the opposite, considering that with safe areas in Syria, Syrian refugees no longer have reason to stay in his country.

"Last summer, after accusing the UN Commission of trying to persuade the Syrian refugees not to return to intimidate them, Bassil ordered that the UNHCR staff stay be stopped.

In conclusion, the Syrian authorities are attempting to obstruct the efforts of UN members by preventing them from entering the areas where the refugees arrived to verify the voluntary nature of the return and the security situation in the region.