Monday, December 24, 2007

MIDEAST: They Do Not Exist, And That Is Official

"BEIRUT, Dec 24 (IPS) - In the maze of dirty streets that spreads from Beirut's revamped Sport City to the shabby Halabi quarters, 20,000 refugees are clustered in what is known as the Bourj al-Barajneh Palestinian camp. In a town plagued by poverty, many families live in complete destitution.

These forgotten people have fallen through the cracks of legality and belong nowhere: they are known as non-ID Palestinians.

With the establishment of the state of Israel in 1948, many Palestinians fled their homeland to Lebanon. Today, there are approximately 400,000 refugees living in the 'Land of the Cedars', some with no documentation, and not registered with either the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) or the Lebanese authorities......"

No comments: