Charbel Says Higher Defense Council to Impose Strict Entry Measures on Syrians

Caretaker Interior Minister Marwan Charbel stressed on Wednesday that the government will address during a meeting for the Higher Defense Council the new entry controls that will be imposed on the Syrians fleeing the turmoil in the neighboring country.

“The details and the implementation of the measures will be discussed next week during the Higher Defense Council's meeting at the Baabda Palace,” Charbel told pan-Arab daily Asharq al-Awsat.

He pointed out that the General Security center at the border between the two countries will start checking the identification cards of the Syrians entering the country, therefor, the refugees have to legally organize their permits.

The residency permits will have a timeframe of six months, Charbel told the newspaper.

Asked about the refugees who fled the violence in their areas and might not have the required ID cards or those who entered Lebanon illegally, Charbel said that the security forces will carry out the necessary measures in line with their conditions.

Many Syrian refugees are forced to sleep rough on the streets because they can not afford to rent somewhere to live.

But the presence of 600,000 alongside a population of just four million has sparked mounting friction.

A recent opinion poll found that 54 percent of respondents believed Lebanon should close its doors to the refugees. A full 82 percent said that the refugees were stealing jobs from Lebanese.