The Minister of the Displaced in the Lebanese caretaker government, Issam Sharaf El-Din, accused Prime Minister Najib Mikati of showing his own interests with countries as a businessman over national interests.
Sharaf al-Din considered in press statements that after the success of the plan and his visit to Syria, things changed and Mikati began to undermine his powers, according to the Lebanese “Al-Manar” channel.
Sharaf El-Din said: “The prime minister is a businessman and has his institutions in the West, ie donor countries, and he does not want to disagree with them, even at the expense of the Lebanese people.”
Sharaf El-Din made it clear that he visited Syria with the knowledge and approval of President Michel Aoun and Prime Minister Najib Mikati, who was in constant contact with him and was informed of the latest developments in the refugee file.
The Minister of the Displaced in Lebanon stated that the documents to officially mandate him to negotiate with the Syrian state regarding the return of refugees to their country are present.
Sharaf El-Din had revealed earlier, that he felt “positive and serious” from the Syrian side, regarding the plan for the return of the displaced that he put in place, after his visit to Syria.
Sharaf al-Din pointed out that the Syrian presence has been divided into three categories, namely the category of displaced people, the category of workers and the category of political refugees.
Sharaf El-Din stated that 83 percent of the displaced are outside the camps, considering that they benefit from electricity, water, and subsidized bread, and compete with the Lebanese in their livelihood.
The Lebanese minister indicated that Prime Minister Najib Mikati is indifferent to the issue of the return of the displaced, and that he tried to communicate with him some time ago about the issue of displacement, but Mikati did not answer the call.
According to official estimates, the number of Syrian refugees residing in Lebanon is about 1.5 million, and most of them suffer from difficult living conditions, especially with the worsening economic crisis in Lebanon.
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