Thousands pour into Syria in scramble to escape Israeli assault on Lebanon

Mass of people crossing border is biggest Syria has faced in more than a decade

The Jedaydet Yabous border crossing in south-western Syria has been inundated. AFP

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A steady stream of packed buses and cars carrying anxious migrants rushed towards the Jedaydet Yabous border crossing between Lebanon and Syria on Monday. Distraught families lugging their possessions waited in long queues as overwhelmed officials struggled with the masses of people jostling to enter.

Tens of thousands are fleeing an aerial bombardment of Lebanon as Israel steps up its military assault against Hezbollah. Air strikes have killed more than 1,000 people and displaced about a million in the past two weeks, with the southern Beirut suburb of Dahieh, a Hezbollah stronghold, a prime target.

Since the onset of the Syrian civil war in 2011, no border crossing in Syria has experienced an influx comparable to the current surge, with relief workers distributing food, mattresses and blankets to an estimated 90,000 people who entered over the last week. Those fleeing include both Lebanese and Syrians.

Israa Ibrahim, 44, a Syrian in Dahieh, told The National she was heading back to Syria for fear of losing her life.

“We had to return because of the many calamities that have befallen us. We were close to the missile attacks, and I feared I was going to die,” she said next to her two young children. “I came back for them, they need safety, and I can’t afford to pay these rents in Lebanon. I’m here because it's my only option, it's here or I sleep in the streets.”

A Lebanese family, who requested anonymity, also said it was a life-and-death decision to leave the country.

“We fled to protect our lives and were fortunate to find refuge with friends in Damascus,” one of the family said. “Being here and safe is preferable, as the level of exploitation and extortion in Lebanon has become absurd. Many others are also fleeing.”

A border official on the Syrian side told The National that more than 90,000 Syrians and Lebanese had crossed in the last week. On Sunday alone, 7,600 Lebanese people and about 28,000 Syrians made the journey, according to the Syrian Border Security Force.

“Two-thirds were Syrian and others were Lebanese,” the official said. “If the situation continues to deteriorate we expect that number to increase.”

A newly installed Syrian government recently set its main task as managing the stream of migrants alongside efforts by the UN's refugee agency and the Syrian Arab Red Crescent. Transport and humanitarian aid have been the priority, with most people crossing finding accommodation with relatives or friends.

But returning Syrians have been faced with a bureaucratic hurdle that required each traveller to exchange $100 into local currency at the central bank’s official rate, which is much lower than the black market rate, in a measure designed to boost Syria’s economy. Many impoverished and exhausted families have struggled to gather the sum.

This has sparked a public campaign to remove the law, with high-profile Syrians throwing their weight behind the appeal. Syrian actor Fares Al Helou urged returning Syrians to pretend they are Lebanese to avoid the charge. Lebanese nationals enjoy visa-free access to Syria.

“You do not need documents. Do not pay $100,” Mr Al Helou said.

In response to the public pressure, the Syrian Prime Minister’s office has issued a directive suspending the $100 requirement for one week.

Dalia Sabbagh was forced to stump up $400 for her family to re-enter Syria, she told The National. “We have a family of four, and while we had to escape the bombing, we struggled to come up with the money. I had to sell gold just to get to safety, we’ve lost everything,” she said.

There has been an outpouring of support for Lebanon across Syria. Actor Ghassan Massoud, famous for his role as the Muslim leader Salahdin in the Ridley Scott film Kingdom of Heaven, offered to open his homes to those fleeing.

“I have three houses in Syria. All my doors are open to any Lebanese citizen. We are one people and one country, God willing,” he wrote on social media. “I don't care about your religion, I don't care about your position, I don't care about your affiliation.”

Despite the fact Syria is still reeling from its own war and economic ruin, it is relatively well-placed to help people fleeing Lebanon's strife, believes Kamal Alam, a fellow at the Atlantic Council think tank.

“Syria has a long history of excelling in looking after hundreds of thousands of Lebanese refugees and almost two million Iraqis post-2003. The UN said that the way Syrians looked after Iraqi refugees post-2003 and Lebanese in 2006 was a model way,” he told The National.

“Now, of course, Syria is no longer the state it was in the mid-2000s. However, the central government in Damascus is now stronger than any Lebanese central government. Syria has also absorbed hundreds of thousands of its own internally displaced refugees. And with the UAE and Saudi Arabia relying on Assad to help them in Lebanon, Syria is well-placed to fulfil that task, especially if the situation in Lebanon worsens.”