Palestinians reach agreement with Damascus on return of refugees
Amid efforts to reconstruct the Yarmouk refugee camp on the outskirts of Damascus, the PLO is working to facilitate the return of Palestinian refugees to Syria who fled to Gaza and Lebanon.
RAMALLAH, West Bank — As Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas inaugurated the PLO Executive Committee meeting July 28, he described the Palestinian delegation visit to Syria on July 9 as “very successful.” Abbas said that an agreement has been reached with the Syrian authorities over the participation of both the Palestinian Authority and the UN in the reconstruction process for Yarmouk camp on the outskirts of Damascus, in a bid to help refugees return to their homes.
While no date has been set for the reconstruction of the Palestinian camp, the process is set to be part of the comprehensive reconstruction plan in Syria, which the Syrian government started in some liberated areas.
In this context, several Palestinian families who had fled Syria for the Gaza Strip and Lebanon and wish to return to Syria started July 23 registering their names at the headquarters of the PLO in Gaza and the Palestinian Popular Committees in Lebanon. This came in response to the July 20 announcement by the PLO Refugees Affairs Department that those who fled Syria to Lebanon and Gaza and wish to return to Syria were invited to register their names.
While the registration process is limited to Lebanon and Gaza, the department said it will be shortly declaring the registration mechanism for Palestinians who have fled from Syria to other Arab countries such as Jordan and the Gulf states.
