Lebanese Government and UNHCR Clash Over Syrian Refugee Data

A report by Bassam Abou Zeid, English adaptation by Nadine Sassine

Once again, the Lebanese government has failed to compel the UNHCR to hand over the complete data for 1,486,000 Syrian refugees whose names were provided to the Lebanese side as registered with the commission.

A heated discussion took place during a meeting held at the Grand Serail, in which the Lebanese representatives, including Caretaker Prime Minister, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, and the Acting Director General of General Security, were not convinced by the UNHCR's reasons and excuses for not providing detailed data.

The deadline given to the commission for submitting this data was the end of May, which has already passed without fulfillment.


According to available information, the Lebanese side has given the UNHCR a few more days to provide the data. General Elias Baysari stated that if this does not happen, Lebanon will proceed to collect the data itself through what he termed as Plan B. 

This involves establishing a Lebanese center to gather this data in collaboration with General Security, municipalities, and all relevant official security and other entities involved with the refugees.


Lebanon seeks not only the names of the refugees but also their phone numbers, dates of entry into Lebanon, the routes through which they entered, the regions they came from, the professions they practice, and, if possible, their political affiliations.

This is to classify the refugees and determine who has genuine and solid reasons to stay in Lebanon or resettle in a third country, and who is in Lebanon solely for economic and living reasons. 

Observers pointed out that the UNHCR's fear of the data leaking to the Syrian regime is unfounded, as the Syrian authorities already know, for example, who has evaded military service without needing data from Lebanon.

UNHCR stated that its approach involves supporting Lebanon in upholding international commitments to data protection and compliance with international refugee laws. 

It also expressed commitment to continuing dialogue with the Lebanese government regarding the data issue, with further meetings planned to discuss the request for additional data within the framework of adhering to international data protection standards.