Lebanese security handed Syrian refugee to Assad regime: rights advocates

(Zaman Al Wasl)- Lebanese General security handed a Syrian refugee to the regime on Friday, human rights advocate said.

Lawyer Mohammad Sablouh published on his Facebook page that Hadi Dhia al-Zuhuri was tried before the military court for fighting against the regime. He was then referred to the Juvenile Court in Zahle, which issued a deportation order against him; thus violating the third article of the Convention against Torture, which prevents Lebanon from handing over anyone who is at risk of torture in his country.

The lawyer revealed that al-Zuhuri's father asked him to inform human rights organizations that Lebanese authorities would put his son's life at risk if they are to deport him the upcoming week. However, to their surprise Hadi arrived in Syria on Sunday, showing the Lebanese authority’s insistence on deporting him by working on a holiday.

The deportation comes three years after al-Zuhuri was transferred by the Intelligence Directorate to a specialized court on July 25, 2016 for allegedly belonging to "terrorist organizations" and "participating in attacking Lebanese army posts and units in Arsal," according to a statement issued by the General Security.

Sources told Zaman al-Wasl that al-Zyhuri’s family sought refuge in Lebanon after their displacement from Qusayr in 2013. His father was arrested that same year for several months in several security branches. Hadi was also previously arrested on several counts by the Lebanese judiciary.

Last week, the Refugees' Rights Defenders initiative called for stopping the procedures of forcible deportation of refugees to Syria due to its violation of Article 3 of the UN Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, which Lebanon signed in 2000.

The rights group stressed that these measures would be counterproductive for deported refugees who are at risk of persecution, torture, death and forced participation in armed conflict in some areas of Syria, whether through armed groups or under conscription. The participants emphasized the obligation to ensure the right of the refugee to a lawyer upon arrest for any reason, in accordance with the provisions of the Lebanese Code of Criminal Procedure (Article 47), as well as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the above mentioned UN Convention.

The Mediterranean country of around 4.5 million people says it hosts some 1.5 million Syrians, of which nearly a million are UN-registered refugees.

The participants of the initiative informed Lebanese officials that the continued deterioration of the human rights situation of Syrian refugees in Lebanon would lead to disastrous long-term consequences, stressing the need for the Lebanese government to apply the content of both domestic laws and international conventions regarding the protection of Syrian refugees residing in Lebanon.

The initiative was attended by Access Center for Human Rights, the Syrian American Council, the Lebanese Center for Human Rights, the Irish Syria Solidarity Movement, and the Center for Defense of Liberties and Civil Rights.

Lebanese politicians routinely blame the country's economic and other woes on Syrian refugees and the government has ratcheted up the pressure to send them back.

Rights groups have decried measures to make the lives of refugees increasingly difficult.

Since June, more than 3,600 Syrian families have seen their shelters demolished in the eastern region of Arsal, according to local authorities.

Homes made of anything other than timber and plastic sheeting are not allowed.

In August, the Lebanese army destroyed a further 350 structures in the north of the country and arrested dozens of people for lacking residency documents, humanitarian groups said.

The labour ministry, meanwhile, is cracking down on foreign workers without a permit, a move activists say largely targets Syrians.

Eight years of war in Syria have killed 560,000 people and driven half the pre-war population of 22 million from their homes, including more than 6 million as refugees to neighboring countries.

Zaman Al Wasl