Action Group | Lebanon
In a bold and unprecedented move, a group of Palestinian refugees from Syria living in Lebanon has announced plans to file a legal case against the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), demanding accountability for years of neglect and suffering. The case will be filed through the Lebanese Bar Association.
The initiative comes after a series of meetings held by displaced Syrian Palestinians, during which participants voiced deep concern over the dire humanitarian conditions they have endured since being forcibly uprooted from their homes and camps in Syria due to the war that erupted in 2011.
The refugees, many of whom have lived in limbo for over a decade, reached a collective decision to pursue legal action against UNRWA””holding it responsible as the international body mandated to protect and support Palestinian refugees. Several Lebanese lawyers have stepped forward, offering to represent the case voluntarily and submit the lawsuit on behalf of the affected community.
At the heart of the legal action are demands for the reconstruction of Palestinian homes and camps destroyed in Syria, and for compensation for the immense losses, trauma, and years of displacement. These demands reflect not just a call for material justice, but a plea to restore dignity and uphold the right of return to Palestine.
The case is expected to be officially filed this coming Wednesday, with volunteer lawyers and refugee representatives present””a step the organizers hope will send a strong legal and moral message to UNRWA and the broader international community.
They stress that this is not only a lawsuit””it is a cry for recognition and action, from a community long pushed to the margins. Syrian Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, estimated at around 23,000, continue to live under severe socioeconomic hardship. Only a few have returned to Syria during the most recent Israeli assault on Lebanon, while the majority remain trapped in overcrowded camps and impoverished areas, with no clear solutions in sight