Prime Minister Tammam Salam told LBCI Tuesday that the Syrian refugees in Lebanon will not be “forcibly deported,” one day after he called on the world, mainly the United Nations, to draft a detailed map for their safe return to their homeland.
“We cannot invent appropriate circumstances and we cannot forcibly deport Syrian refugees neither to their country nor to any other country,” Salam said.
“We can only exert pressure to secure their safe return and we are doing so,” the premier added.
Addressing the first-ever UN summit on refugees in New York on Monday, Salam had warned that the “huge and sudden influx of refugees is posing dangerous risks to our stability, security, economy and public services.”
“Lebanon risks collapsing if the international community does not exert major efforts in this regard,” Salam added, addressing UN chief Ban Ki-moon.
On the sidelines of the summit, the Lebanese PM met with the French President Francois Hollande who reiterated France’s support for Lebanon.
“France supports Lebanon at various levels, particularly at the ones related to security and the refugee crisis,” Hollande said.
He also stressed the need to elect a head of state as soon as possible, adding that state intuitions should not be paralyzed.
“France will pursue its contacts with all political rivals in order to reach an agreement in terms of a new president,” he added.