Many Syrian refugees who fled conflict in their country have found themselves stuck with nowhere to go, as Israel carries out its war in Lebanon and overwhelmed government-run shelters prioritise displaced citizens.
Out of a dozen government-run displacement shelters contacted by The National, only one said it might still have the space to host a family.
“Lebanese only. We’re not taking Syrians,” the man on the phone added.
It is a phrase many Syrians heard during the last Israel-Hezbollah war and, as a reignited conflict rages now, they’re hearing it again.
In recent days, the Israeli military has issued orders for people to leave the southern suburbs of Beirut and parts of south Lebanon, forcing hundreds of thousands to flee.
These areas are home to many Syrian refugees who fled to Lebanon during Syria’s civil war. Routinely subjected to discrimination, Syrians in Lebanon have been made even more vulnerable by the war, which erupted earlier this week after Hezbollah joined the fighting against the US and Israel in support of Tehran. With most shelters at capacity and many Lebanese themselves struggling to find a roof over their heads, citizens are given priority.
Lebanese authorities reported 95,773 people are displaced and seeking refuge in 441 shelters. With the vast majority already at full capacity, Syrians are pushed to the back of the line.
“It’s harder for us,” Joumana Abdallah, a native of Aleppo who fled the southern suburbs, where she has been living for years. She now sleeps in Martyrs’ Square, Beirut’s main square, with her family. She said that during the last war in 2024, she spent weeks on the streets, because shelter organisers told her they do not welcome Syrians.
Lacking networks and family connections, many Syrian families don’t even know where to turn for help. Several Syrian families interviewed by The National said they were unaware of hotlines for displaced people and lists of shelters circulating on social media that they could call.
In any case, the emergency hotline of the Disaster Management Unit has proven of little use as Lebanon’s stretched authorities struggle to cope with the massive wave of displacement.
The National tried all the numbers provided by the emergency hotline, but none answered.
Faced with the challenges, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, said it has opened two shelters, currently hosting about 1,300 displaced people, one near Saida and another in Nahr El Bared camp in northern Lebanon. “We are hosting all those in need of shelter, Palestinians, Lebanese and Syrians alike,” said Dorothee Klaus, director of UNRWA Affairs in Lebanon.
Returning to Syria
Abdallah Mohamed, 37, is among at least 38,000 people who have decided to return to Syria, according to figures from the Syrian authorities and the UN refugee agency.
He has lived through five waves of displacement, from his native Raqqa during Syria’s civil war to southern Lebanon, which he has been forced to flee several times because of Israeli bombardment in recent years.
“I feel psychologically below zero,” he said, his voice heavy with exhaustion as he stood near a bus that would take him, along with dozens of others, from Beirut's city centre back to Syria.
Not far away, a man, on his scooter, approached The National’s reporter. “Why don't you ask Syrians why they’re not all going back to their country now?” he said.
But Mr Mohammed feels different. Despite the discrimination, he said, Lebanon is his home. “If the situation calms down, definitely I will come back to Lebanon, because this is where my whole life is now, I have a house, and all my belongings there.” In Raqqa, which he left 10 years ago, his house is barely standing. “It has been partially burnt during the war. Raqqa in general, is completely destroyed.”
With Syria lying in tatters after nearly 14 years of civil war, many are unable to return to their country, simply because they have nothing to go back to.
