A Syrian refugee camp in the Bekaa Valley, Lebanon, close to the Syrian border, December 2016. (Jane Barlow, PA Images)
Six years into the Syrian civil war, there appears to be a glimmer of hope for the 1.5 million refugees residing in neighboring Lebanon, who account for roughly 25% of the population.
Lebanon’s General Security quietly announced in February the waiving of a hefty biannual registration fee of $200 for refugees registered under the UNHCR. In practice, this fee meant that a refugee family of four would have to pay $1600 annually just for registration. But before anyone calls for a collective sigh of relief, we need to read between the lines.
