Lebanon’s General Security chief Abbas Ibrahim has said that the return of Syrian refugees to their home country requires coordination with the regime of Bashar Assad through a UN-attended dialogue.
During a Friday meeting with members of Lebanon’s Press Syndicate, Ibrahim was quoted as saying that “without dialogue and coordination with the Syrian regime, refugees cannot go back.”
He stressed that the United Nations should be part of the talks.
According to Ibrahim, the Syrian crisis will end soon after 80 percent of its issues have been resolved.
Asked about Lebanon’s crossings with Syria, the General Security chief said: “I cannot assert that the border is fully controlled. There is evidence as you know that women and children are dying while trying to infiltrate (the country) through the illegal crossings.”
“We tell any Syrian we arrest because of illegal entry to come (to Lebanon) through legitimate means,” said Ibrahim.
At the peak, the number of Syrian refugees in Lebanon reached 1.7 million.
Those who are officially registered number 1 million. But in reality there are 1.5 displaced Syrians in Lebanon, he added.
