Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah is urging Lebanese authorities to "open the sea" to migrant boats as a means to pressure Europe. His announcement comes ahead of the European Union's parliamentary elections on June 9, where immigration is a critical issue.
In a televised address, Nasrallah called for "a national decision" for "anyone who wants to leave for Europe" to be allowed to leave for Cyprus, the closest EU country to Lebanon's Mediterranean coast. (Related: EU is codifying MIGRATION QUOTAS to flood Europe with illegals.)
Many in Lebanon have long held the sentiment that the EU wants to keep the nearly two million Syrians displaced by the ongoing Syrian Civil War in the country.
Many in Lebanon have long accused the EU of instituting policies to keep Syrian refugees in the country. Nearly two million Syrians, many of whom are undocumented, are residing in Lebanon due to the Syrian Civil War. The majority of the displaced Syrians belong to Sunni groups that are opposed to Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad, who is an ally and supporter of Hezbollah.
The massive amount of refugees in Lebanon gives the country the highest per capita ratio of refugees to legal residents in the world.
Beyond the refugee crisis, Lebanon has been in a deep economic crisis since 2019 and has repeatedly urged the international community to repatriate the refugees. The presence of nearly two million Syrians has sparked protests in the country, with many Lebanese frustrated by the influx.
Some Lebanese politicians blame Syrians for the country's worsening situation, with tensions rising ahead of an annual EU conference on the future of Syria in Brussels on May 27.
Human knowledge is under attack! Governments and powerful corporations are using censorship to wipe out humanity's knowledge base about nutrition, herbs, self-reliance, natural immunity, food production, preparedness and much more. We are preserving human knowledge using AI technology while building the infrastructure of human freedom. Speak freely without censorship at the new decentralized, blockchain-power Brighteon.io. Explore our free, downloadable generative AI tools at Brighteon.AI. Support our efforts to build the infrastructure of human freedom by shopping at HealthRangerStore.com, featuring lab-tested, certified organic, non-GMO foods and nutritional solutions.
However, Nasrallah clarified in his speech that he has no intention of pushing refugees to leave by "forcing displaced Syrians to board boats."
EU providing over a billion euros to keep migrants in Lebanon
Meanwhile, the EU has been working to keep Syrians in Lebanon amid growing anti-refugee sentiment across Europe. In early May, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced a one billion euro ($1.09 billion) aid package to Beirut to combat illegal immigration.
Many Lebanese see this as a bribe to keep Syrians from fleeing to Europe and making sure Lebanon bears the financial burden of caring for the refugees.
Nasrallah pointed out that Syrians "are forbidden to leave and therefore turn to smuggling and inflatable boats, leading to drownings at sea because the Lebanese army is enforcing a policy to prevent emigration."
He also urged the Parliament of Lebanon to pressure the EU and the United States to lift sanctions against Syria, which Damascus claims hinders aid and reconstruction and efforts to bring Syrians back.
Lebanon must tell the West that "we must all coordinate with the Syrian government to send displaced people back to Syria and provide them with aid on the spot," he added.
The EU's one billion euro initiative for Lebanon is meant to curb the influx of asylum seekers and migrants from Syria fleeing the country through the Mediterranean Sea to southern European nations like Cyprus and Italy.
This initiative follows similar EU aid packages for countries like Egypt, Tunisia and Mauritania, aimed at reinforcing their borders. The move comes amidst growing hostility toward Syrian refugees in Lebanon and a notable increase in irregular migration of Syrian refugees from Lebanon to Cyprus.
During a visit to Beirut alongside Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides, Von der Leyen disclosed that the aid distribution would commence this year and continue until 2027.
The bulk of the aid, amounting to 736 million euros ($799 million), will be directed toward supporting Syrian refugees and other vulnerable groups in Lebanon, while 200 million euros ($217 million) will be earmarked for enhancing Lebanese security services to enforce border and migration control, as per figures provided by the Cypriot government.
Additionally, a portion of the aid will be allocated to support Lebanese fishermen, aiming to dissuade them from selling their boats to groups who smuggle migrants to Europe.
Von der Leyen further announced the EU's commitment to facilitating a "more structured approach to voluntary return" of Syrian refugees in collaboration with the United Nations' refugee agency.
The EU will also continue to uphold "legal pathways" for refugee resettlement in Europe. Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati welcomed the aid package, emphasizing the interconnectedness of Lebanon's security with that of European countries and warning against the escalation of the crisis, which could have repercussions extending beyond Lebanon's borders.
Watch this clip from Real America's Voice discussing how the White House has allocated $3.5 billion to support mass migration from the Middle East.
This video is from the GalacticStorm channel on Brighteon.com.
More related stories:
Study finds MASS MIGRATION is a bigger problem than climate change.
Leftist governments in Australia and Denmark now moving to halt MIGRATION.
Sources include:
Please contact us for more information.