Photo of the meeting of the Lebanese government's Disaster Risk Management Unit on March 12, 2025, in Tripoli. Photo provided by our correspondent Michel Hallak.
TRIPOLI — North Lebanon Gov. Judge Ramzi Nohra chaired a meeting Wednesday in Tripoli with the disaster risk management unit to assess the impact of a recent wave of Syrian refugees arriving in northern Lebanon following violent clashes on the Syrian coast.
According to initial information from the meeting, about 8,500 refugees — 1,791 families, including 63 Lebanese families who had been residing in Syria — have crossed into northern Lebanon. Early estimates indicate that most of the refugees have settled in 17 towns in the Akkar district. Other areas in the North Lebanon governorate, notably Tripoli, Koura and Zgharta, have also received refugees, though in smaller numbers, totaling around 2,000. Officials are still verifying the exact figures.
The meeting was attended by several local officials, religious dignitaries, Lebanese Army officers, and representatives from the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). The aim was to "respond quickly to assist displaced individuals, provide shelter, and meet their basic needs while assessing their security, social, and health conditions," according to a statement issued after the meeting and relayed by the state-run National News Agency (NNA).
At least 1,383 civilians killed in Syria
Since March 6, thousands of Syrians have illegally crossed into Akkar and North Lebanon, fleeing massacres in western Syria committed by fighters aligned with the new Syrian authorities. According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), pro-Turkish Syrian National Army (SNA) fighters were among those responsible for the violence. The massacres killed over 1,383 civilians, mostly Alawites.
The violence erupted as remnants of Syria’s fallen regime launched an offensive against the security forces of Damascus’ interim government. The clashes have left more than 400 security personnel and nearly 150 loyalist fighters dead, according to SOHR.
Meanwhile, the disaster risk management unit reported that since December 2024, about 89,400 people — including 20,000 repatriated Lebanese — have arrived from Syria in the Baalbek-Hermel governorate in northern Bekaa. By the end of February 2025, UNHCR estimated that around 300,000 Syrians had returned to Syria from neighboring countries since December 2024.
The meeting participants agreed to form a "small committee" to monitor the evolving situation and continue efforts to document the number of refugees who have recently arrived in Lebanon. "The census will help assess the level of humanitarian, social, and health assistance needed, based on available resources and in coordination with relevant international organizations," the statement said.
The Lebanese Red Cross announced that it would begin distributing aid to refugee families starting Wednesday.
While the fall of the Assad regime on Dec. 8, 2024, did not immediately spark violence, Lebanese authorities fear that the arrival of thousands of Alawite refugees in North Lebanon could reignite sectarian clashes.
Last Sunday, the Lebanese Army deployed a unit along Syria Street, which separates Tripoli’s Jabal Mohsen, a predominantly Alawite neighborhood, from the mainly Sunni Bab al-Tabbaneh, after tensions escalated following the stabbing of a minor. The attacker, initially misidentified as a Syrian national, was later confirmed to be from Jabal Mohsen, according to Al-Nashra.
Following the incident, the Alawite Islamic Council called for the preservation of "civil peace, stability, and security" and said it had convinced the alleged assailant to surrender to authorities. The council also expressed its "full confidence in the state’s security services to carry out their duties with transparency and uncover the circumstances of the incident," according to its statement.