Reuters confirmed that Syrian regime forces have detained Syrian refugees who have been forcibly and arbitrarily deported by Lebanese authorities as part of a week-long campaign.
The agency reported that families of Syrian refugees and human rights activists confirmed that refugees deported from Lebanon were arrested and conscripted by regime forces.
Sources confirmed that the arrest of these refugees was carried out by the Fourth Division, led by Mahir Assad, the brother of the Syrian regime president, which has close ties to Hezbollah and Iran.
A Syrian refugee has confirmed that the Lebanese army raided their place of residence last month and arrested 3 of his brothers on charges of not having legal documents, who said they were later deported to Syria.
The young man said he had received a call from one of his imprisoned brothers that they were in a Fourth Division prison.
Confirming to Reuters that he was arrested by the Fourth Division after being deported from Lebanon, another refugee said he was able to get out after paying sums to smugglers linked to the regime and Hezbollah.
Human rights activists claim that the Lebanese army’s campaign against Syrian refugees is random and invalid, such as the lack of valid legal documents.
Human rights defenders point out that these arrests have even affected Syrians registered with the United Nations, underage children and youth beneficiaries of the Norwegian Refugee Council programme.
