News / Lebanon / Syria

Lebanese army arrests eight people after Syrian refugee camp set ablaze

Sunday, 27 December 2020 7:20 PM [ Last Update: Sunday, 27 December 2020 7:20 PM ]

Dozens of Syrian refugees return to the remains of their torched camp. (Photo by AFP)

The Lebanese army says it has arrested eight people after the country’s nationals set fire to an informal refugee settlement in the north following a fight.

In a statement on Sunday, the army said it arrested two Lebanese nationals and six Syrians over a personal dispute between a number of Lebanese men and Syrian workers.

“The Lebanese men fired bullets in the air and torched the tents of Syrian refugees,” it said.

State media reported earlier that a refugee camp in northern Lebanon was set on fire on Saturday night, forcing more than 370 residents to flee.

The United Nations refugee agency, UNHCR, confirmed the incident, which happened in the Miniyeh region, and said some of the injured had been taken to hospital.

UNHCR spokesman Khaled Kabbara told AFP that the fire had spread to all the tented shelters made of plastic sheeting and wood. He added that the camp housed some 75 families.

Syrian refugee camp in Lebanon set ablaze after row

A Syrian refugee camp in northern Lebanon is set on fire following a fight between members of the camp and a local Lebanese family.

Some of the refugees returned to the remains of the camp on Sunday to try to find any belonging that might have remained undamaged.

“I came back to check on belongings inside our small tent only to discover that we no longer own anything,” said Amira Issa, a 45-year-old mother of five who fled Syria eight years ago.

“We lost everything in one moment,” she told AFP, sobbing.

The Lebanese took to social media to voice sympathy with the victims and denounced the attack.

In a Sunday statement, the Syrian Foreign Ministry urged Lebanon to protect the refugees and renewed an invitation for the Syrian refugees abroad to return to the country.

It said the Syrian government is making every effort to facilitate the refugees’ return, SANA news agency reported.

Lebanon hosts some 1.5 million Syrian refugees, who fled their homes after their country plunged into foreign-sponsored militancy in March 2011.

Since the beginning of the conflict in Syria, millions of people have been displaced and traumatized.

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