Lebanese authorities have deported hundreds of Syrian refugees, including women and children, in recent months. This comes as the country faces an economic crisis of an unprecedented nature and a political vacuum.

Amid triple-digit inflation, Syrian refugees are being scapegoated for years of mismanagement and corruption by Lebanon’s political elite. The deportations raise many ethical and legal issues, say human rights defenders. 

The deportation campaigns led by Lebanese authorities consist of driving deportees to the border and handing them directly to Syrian officers, said Fadil Feki, executive director at the Lebanese Center for Human Rights (CLDH).

"Lebanon is violating the rights of individuals at risk of torture. In three cases we have been following, three ex-military personnel who defected from the Syrian army were tortured after being forcibly repatriated to Syria," says Feki.

Refugees interviewed recount being detained in overcrowded prison cells and questioned over whether they have ever opposed the Syrian government. Some say they are released once they agree to sign up for military service. Cases of torture, rape, sexual violence and enforced disappearance committed by Syrian military forces against Syrian returnees have also been documented.

Also read: Deportation of Syrians from Lebanon 'alarming': Amnesty International

Threats and abuse upon return

Refugees who are forcibly returned are viewed with suspicion by Syrian authorities for leaving Syria and face a multitude of threats and abuses upon their return, according to a 2021 report by Human Rights Watch.

Investigations led by activists on the ground have shown that Damascus mapped out rebel zones which were once under siege by the government and later "reconciled". Refugees from these areas are considered a security threat by the Syrian government. Upon their forced return to Syria, certain individuals are required to appear before the Counter-Terrorism Court and later stripped of their property and their possessions.

Along with the human rights violations, the deportations also "raise a lot of issues from a legal perspective", said Feki. Lebanon, which ratified the UN Convention against Torture in 2000 and passed a national "Anti-Torture" law in 2017, is violating its own domestic and international law, according to the human rights defender.

Lebanon hosts the highest number of refugees per capita in the world. Since the beginning of the civil war in Syria in 2011, it has welcomed some 1.5 million refugees. Authorities struggled to handle the surge of newcomers and municipalities adopted ad-hoc regulations and practices to ensure that refugees could never integrate.

"Lebanon refuses to recognize Syrians as refugees and calls them ‘displaced’ (naziheen). The term is usually used for a person moving inside one country and implies they are in a transition phase," said Feki.

Also read: Lebanon's threat to send Syrians home: Fact or fiction?

Syrians being blamed for the economic crisis

Government leaders from the former Lebanese President Michel Aoun to Hezbollah parliamentarians have called for the return of Syrian refugees to their country. During a conference last March in the city of Baalbek, near the border with Syria, the governor Bachir Khodr said his salary was "lower than that of a displaced Syrian". His remarks generated controversy but he also received support from Lebanese who pointed at Syrian refugees for being responsible for the economic crisis.

Tarek Chindeb, a lawyer, replied to Khodr’s statements point by point on Twitter. He said, "Syrian refugees have not received help from the Lebanese, but rather from the international community, and Lebanon benefits a lot from them in various fields."

Syrian refugees in Lebanon are likely to continue being targeted by the authorities, especially as Lebanon struggles to fill its top leadership position. "Many are limiting their commute to work, and they avoid leaving their house for anything besides their basic needs for fear of being deported. They are living through difficult times," said Feki.

The Syrian war continues to this day and opposition activists estimate the total number of deaths to be between 503,064 and about 613,407 as of March 2023.

Also read: Displacement and migration explained