The Israeli offensive in Lebanon adds to Turkey's fears of a new exodus of refugees

2024-10-20 17:50:39, Kosova & Bota CNA

The Israeli offensive in Lebanon adds to Turkey's fears of a new exodus of

As Israel continues its offensive in Lebanon, the United Nations says around 400,000 people have sought refuge in Syria. VOA correspondent Dorian Jones reports from Istanbul that Turkey is preparing for a new exodus as the numbers of those leaving Lebanon rise.

The Israeli offensive in Lebanon has caused many people to flee to neighboring Syria. The United Nations says more than 250,000 people have fled, many of them Syrians who had sought refuge in Lebanon after the outbreak of civil war in their country.

Continued fighting could increase the number of refugees heading to Syria and Turkey, causing a humanitarian crisis, Metin Corabatir, with the Ankara-based Asylum and Migration Research Center, told VOA.

"We are not only talking about Syrian refugees returning to Syria, but the Lebanese population is crossing the border into Syria. Syria will either close the borders or force the refugees to go north towards the Turkish border. This would cause a catastrophic situation for people."

Those who left Lebanon have started arriving in refugee camps in northeastern Syria, near the border with Turkey. The Washokani camp was set up for refugees from the Syrian civil war, but officials say they are overwhelmed.

VOA spoke to Mr. Abdulrazak Muhammad, administrator of the Washokani refugee camp.

"We are forced to accept them because they are refugees who fled the war and have nowhere to go. There is no tent left, we cannot take any more people".

But neighboring Turkey with about 4.5 million refugees, among them over 3 million Syrians, is facing increasing public opposition to the presence of refugees.

Rising tensions earlier in the year led to violence against refugees. Analyst Metin Corabatir says the refugee situation has become a huge political burden for the government.

"During the last two elections, there was a lot of debate about the issue of asylum. The opposition was very active in creating a negative perception of refugees in the public".

Ankara has built a wall along the border with Syria in an attempt to prevent more refugees from entering Turkey. Analysts say the government is determined to prevent another exodus from the latest war in the Middle East.

Murat Aslan is with the SETA Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research, a pro-government institute.

"Turkey does not want another wave of refugees, because Turkey is experiencing an economic crisis and is trying to fix the situation. Currently, inflation is under control and we expect it to decrease. So a wave of refugees would increase costs, increase inflation and bring social uncertainty. So this is why Turkey will not tolerate another wave of refugees."

But this stance could be put to the test if Israel continues the offensive, causing more refugees and at the same time the possibility that Turkey will face a humanitarian crisis on its borders./ VOA