Lebanon ‘Won’t Wait for Political Solution’ in Syria to Resolve Refugee Crisis

Lebanese President Michel Aoun heads the cabinet session at Baabda Palace. Dalati and Nohra photo
Lebanese President Michel Aoun heads the cabinet session at Baabda Palace. Dalati and Nohra photo
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Lebanon ‘Won’t Wait for Political Solution’ in Syria to Resolve Refugee Crisis

Lebanese President Michel Aoun heads the cabinet session at Baabda Palace. Dalati and Nohra photo
Lebanese President Michel Aoun heads the cabinet session at Baabda Palace. Dalati and Nohra photo

Lebanese President Michel Aoun has said that the country would not wait for a political solution in Syria to resolve the problem of displaced Syrians, stressing that Lebanon should defend the nation’s interest.

“It is essential that Lebanon’s position on the refugee issue be unified, especially with regard to realizing that the consequences of this issue will fall on Lebanon and they entail many security, political and socio-economic risks,” Aoun said during a cabinet session he chaired at Baabda Palace on Friday.

According to a statement read by Information Minister Melhem Riachi, Aoun said. “We will not wait for a political solution or a security solution for the Syrian crisis. We are duty-bound to defend the interests of our nation."

The president met this week with representatives of the European Union, the Arab League and the five permanent members of the UN Security Council in Beirut. He told the international envoys he wanted to find ways for the refugees to return safely.

During Friday's session, the cabinet appointed boards of directors for six state hospitals.

In his briefing, Riachi said that Prime Minister Saad Hariri also spoke about the refugee crisis.

The issue of refugees “is causing socio-economic, political and security consequences on the Lebanese situation,” Hariri said. “But we should deal with this burden in a way that we preserve Lebanon’s interests.”

He added that a ministerial committee tasked with pursuing the refugee crisis would meet next week to examine a working paper prepared by the interior and foreign ministries before presenting it to the government.

During the session, both Aoun and Hariri lauded parliament’s adoption of the 2017 state budget. The president also called for a swift approval of the draft 2018 budget.



Gaza Rescuers Say Israeli Fire Kills 8 Near Aid Centers, 4 Others

19 June 2025, Palestinian Territories, Gaza: Palestinians gather along the Coastal Road in the Al-Sudaniyya area of northern Gaza as they wait for humanitarian aid expected to arrive through the Zikim crossing on 19 June 2025. (dpa)
19 June 2025, Palestinian Territories, Gaza: Palestinians gather along the Coastal Road in the Al-Sudaniyya area of northern Gaza as they wait for humanitarian aid expected to arrive through the Zikim crossing on 19 June 2025. (dpa)
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Gaza Rescuers Say Israeli Fire Kills 8 Near Aid Centers, 4 Others

19 June 2025, Palestinian Territories, Gaza: Palestinians gather along the Coastal Road in the Al-Sudaniyya area of northern Gaza as they wait for humanitarian aid expected to arrive through the Zikim crossing on 19 June 2025. (dpa)
19 June 2025, Palestinian Territories, Gaza: Palestinians gather along the Coastal Road in the Al-Sudaniyya area of northern Gaza as they wait for humanitarian aid expected to arrive through the Zikim crossing on 19 June 2025. (dpa)

Gaza's civil defense agency said Israeli fire killed at least 12 people on Saturday, including eight who had gathered near aid distribution sites in the Palestinian territory suffering severe food shortages.

Civil defense spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP that three people were killed by gunfire from Israeli forces while waiting to collect aid in the southern Gaza Strip.

In a separate incident, Bassal said five people were killed in a central area known as the Netzarim corridor, where thousands of Palestinians have gathered daily in the hope of receiving food rations.

The Israeli army told AFP it was "looking into" both incidents, which according to the civil defense agency occurred near distribution centers run by the US- and Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation.

Its operations began at the end of May when Israel eased a total aid blockade that lasted more than two months but have been marred by chaotic scenes and neutrality concerns.

UN agencies and major aid groups have refused to cooperate with the foundation over concerns it was designed to cater to Israeli military objectives.

The health ministry in the Hamas-run territory said on Saturday that 450 people had been killed and 3,466 others injured while seeking aid in near-daily incidents since late May.

The Israeli blockade imposed in early March amid an impasse in truce negotiations had produced famine-like conditions across Gaza, according to rights groups.

Israel's military has pressed its operations across Gaza more than 20 months since an unprecedented Hamas attack triggered the devastating war, and even as attention has shifted to the war with Iran since June 13.

Bassal told AFP that three people were killed on Saturday in an Israeli air strike on Gaza City in the north, and one more in another strike on the southern city of Khan Younis.

Israeli forces also demolished more than 10 houses in Gaza City "by detonating them with explosives", he added.

Israeli restrictions on media in the Gaza Strip and difficulties in accessing some areas mean AFP is unable to independently verify the tolls and details provided by rescuers and authorities.

Earlier this week, the UN's World Health Organization warned that Gaza's health system was at a "breaking point", pleading for fuel to be allowed into the territory to keep its remaining hospitals running.

The Hamas attack in October 2023 that sparked the war resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.

Israel's retaliatory military campaign has killed at least 55,908 people, also mostly civilians, according to the Gaza health ministry. The UN considers these figures reliable.