経済危機のレバノン、シリア人を本国送還

【ベイルートＡＦＰ＝時事】レバノンは１４日、同国に逃れていたシリア人数百人を本国に送還した。経済危機に見舞われているレバノンでは、大勢の難民受け入れに反発する声が高まっている。（写真は、レバノン北東部アルサルで、シリアに帰還する難民が乗る車両）
　ＡＦＰカメラマンによると、シリアとの国境に近い北東部アルサルでは同日朝、シリア人送還のためのバンやトラックが待機していた。マットレスなど家財が山のように積まれ、家畜を乗せている車両もあった。
　レバノンの国営通信社ＮＮＡは、約３３０人が「自主帰還」リストに登録されていると報道。シリアの国営シリア・アラブ通信（ＳＡＮＡ）も、レバノンからシリア人が帰還したと伝えた。ただ人数には触れていない。
　レバノンには現在、シリア人が約２００万人滞在している。人口１人当たりが受け入れているシリア人の規模では、世界最多となっている。そのうち約７８万５０００人が難民として国連に登録されている。
　レバノンは２０１９年以来、深刻な経済危機に陥っている。欧州連合（ＥＵ）は今月、域内への不法移民流入阻止に向け、レバノンに対し総額１０億ユーロ（約１７００億円）の支援を表明した。しかし、レバノン国内では難民受け入れに対する反発が強まっており、支援規模は不十分と受け止められている。
　レバノンは２０１７年、シリア難民の「自主帰還」措置を小規模な形で開始。国際人権団体アムネスティ・インターナショナルは当時、同措置について、難民がシリアに戻れば「深刻な虐待や迫害」にさらされる恐れがあると批判していた。【翻訳編集ＡＦＰＢＢＮｅｗｓ】
〔ＡＦＰ＝時事〕（2024/05/15-16:17）

Beirut repatriated several hundred Syrians on Tuesday in coordination with Damascus as pressure mounts in cash-strapped Lebanon for the hundreds of thousands of refugees to go home.
Vans and small trucks were waiting in the Arsal area near the border early in the morning to ferry home the returnees, an AFP photographer reported.
The vehicles were piled high with mattresses and other belongings and some were even accompanied by livestock.
I'm going back alone for the moment, in order to prepare for my family's return, said a 57-year-old man originally from Syria's Qalamun area, declining to be identified by name.
I am happy to go back to my country after 10 years as a refugee, he told AFP.
Around 330 people had registered to be part of the voluntary return, Lebanon's official National News Agency (NNA) said.
Syrian state news agency SANA reported that an unspecified number of people had arrived from Lebanon as part of the initiative.
Lebanon, which has been mired in a crushing economic crisis since late 2019, says it hosts around two million Syrians, the world's highest number of refugees per capita, with almost 785,000 registered with the United Nations.
Earlier this month, the European Union announced $1 billion in aid to Beirut to help stem irregular migration to the bloc, but in Lebanon the package has been criticised for failing to meet growing public demands for Syrians to leave.
Parliament is set to hold a session on Wednesday to discuss the EU assistance.
Lebanon began the voluntary return of small numbers of Syrians in 2017 based on lists sent to the government in Damascus, with the last such group crossing the border in 2022.
Human rights group Amnesty International said at the time that Lebanese authorities were putting Syrians at risk of heinous abuse and persecution upon their return, adding that the refugees were not in a position to take a free and informed decision about their return.
On Monday, Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah urged Lebanese authorities to open the seas for migrant boats to put pressure on the European Union, whose easternmost member, Cyprus, is less than 200 kilometres (125 miles) away.
Nicosia on Tuesday expressed concern at the remarks and said Nasrallah's message certainly should concern us.
We are in contact with the authorities of Lebanon, and we believe that through these contacts, we will be able to manage it (irregular migration), Cypriot government spokesman Konstantinos Letymbiotis told reporters.