Hundreds of Syrians refugees return home from Lebanon

Some 500 Syrian refugees in Lebanon’s south-eastern town of Shebaa left to today their homes in Syria’s Beit Jinn, which was recaptured by the Syrian regime army from the opposition in December, media reports have revealed.

According to Sky News, 15 buses provided by Syria reached to Shebaa to transport the refugees out following an agreement between authorities in Beirut and Damascus.

The refugees’ convoy was accompanied by the Lebanese security forces, which is present along the country’s borders.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said in a statement it was not involved in organising “these returns or other returns at this point, considering the prevailing humanitarian and security situation in Syria”.

Over half of Syria’s population have fled their homes since the outbreak of war in 2011, including more than a million who sought refuge in Lebanon, where they now make up more than a quarter of the population.