Published : 06-09-2021
UNRWA called on Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, including 27,000 Palestinians from Syria, to reach out to the Agency’s health chief in case of an emergency situation that requires hospitalization.
UNRWA said the refugees can receive medical treatment and hospitalization services exclusively at health facilities contracted to the Agency.
In late August, a Palestinian refugee sheltered in Naher AlBared Camp in Lebanon died after hospitals refused to let him in.
Earlier this year, UNRWA raised concerns over the dire situation of Palestine refugees in Lebanon and the precariousness in which they live, particularly in the last year of acute financial crisis and pandemic. Many Palestine refugees live in 12 overcrowded camps across the country.
Palestine refugees in Lebanon get health, education and social services from UNRWA. The most vulnerable, including Palestine refugees who fled from Syria, get financial assistance to buy food and other basic necessities. But with the current financial crisis, most Palestine refugees have found themselves slipping further into destitution. The “dollar crisis” in Lebanon, where the official exchange rate of the US dollar against the Lebanese pound is nearly ten times lower than the black-market rate, has seen the purchasing power of the UNRWA cash assistance slashed tenfold.
Even before the pandemic and the financial meltdown of Lebanon, Palestine refugees lived in poverty and faced systemic restrictions that limited their employment, property ownership and, at times, movement. Joblessness has been high in Palestine refugee camps for many years, but the collapse of the Lebanese economy in the last few months has left many of them feeling desperate, especially as UNRWA has been struggling with an acute financial crisis itself. COVID-19 has been the latest in a series of recent devastating blows to a community that has suffered marginalization and uncertainty for decades.
UNRWA called on Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, including 27,000 Palestinians from Syria, to reach out to the Agency’s health chief in case of an emergency situation that requires hospitalization.
UNRWA said the refugees can receive medical treatment and hospitalization services exclusively at health facilities contracted to the Agency.
In late August, a Palestinian refugee sheltered in Naher AlBared Camp in Lebanon died after hospitals refused to let him in.
Earlier this year, UNRWA raised concerns over the dire situation of Palestine refugees in Lebanon and the precariousness in which they live, particularly in the last year of acute financial crisis and pandemic. Many Palestine refugees live in 12 overcrowded camps across the country.
Palestine refugees in Lebanon get health, education and social services from UNRWA. The most vulnerable, including Palestine refugees who fled from Syria, get financial assistance to buy food and other basic necessities. But with the current financial crisis, most Palestine refugees have found themselves slipping further into destitution. The “dollar crisis” in Lebanon, where the official exchange rate of the US dollar against the Lebanese pound is nearly ten times lower than the black-market rate, has seen the purchasing power of the UNRWA cash assistance slashed tenfold.
Even before the pandemic and the financial meltdown of Lebanon, Palestine refugees lived in poverty and faced systemic restrictions that limited their employment, property ownership and, at times, movement. Joblessness has been high in Palestine refugee camps for many years, but the collapse of the Lebanese economy in the last few months has left many of them feeling desperate, especially as UNRWA has been struggling with an acute financial crisis itself. COVID-19 has been the latest in a series of recent devastating blows to a community that has suffered marginalization and uncertainty for decades.
