EU Commissioner: Next Migrant Wave Could Come from Lebanon
The European Union's enlargement commissioner told the German Die Welt daily Saturday that the next wave of migration to Europe could come from Syria's neighbor, fragile Lebanon.
"Developments in Lebanon unsettle me. The situation there is ... dramatic," Johannes Hahn told the conservative-leaning daily.
"The next wave of refugees might come from there," Hahn said.
More than four years into Syria's war, Lebanon has become home to more than 1.5 million Syrians living in grim conditions -- making Lebanon's the highest refugee population per capita in the world.
"This country (Lebanon) has always been the most fragile of the region," Hahn said, noting his concern over its endemic "political instability."
"It also has a high unemployment rate and exorbitant public debt. It's a dangerous mix," he warned.
EU leaders have agreed to boost aid for Syria's neighbors, including one billion dollars through U.N. agencies, in a bid to mitigate the refugee influx into Europe.
26 September 2015, 17:51
33
Ya habibi ya EU Commissioner, that next migrant wave from Lebanon has already started, and months ago, you're a bit late as usual. I personally know of a good number of Syrians who left Lebanon for Turkey by air, then crossed to Greece by dinghy boat, then continued the trek to Europe. It was at that time when the idea of life-vests and life support systems came about. Maybe what you need to adjust to your statement is this, that much bigger waves are now leaving for Europe from Lebanon, here we allowed them to work and earn some money, so our Syrians are pretty cool and better off to make that trip. Take, them, keep them, enjoy them, the more you take, the better life will be for us. Next? Let the hypocrite Arabs and Iranians too take their fair lot, we've had quite enough of refugees.
27 September 2015, 13:53
12
Notice how they are now genuinely trying to find a solution in Syria. The mass refugees were a wake up call to Europe and the world, it was ok as long as they only read about Syrians being gassed and murdered but now it's a different ball game altogether. The Syrians paid a very heavy price for the massive oil and gas reserves that were discovered in 2009 I think.
27 September 2015, 13:54
11
Non of this would have happened if they didn't decide that Palestine would be the state of Israel.
