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UNRWA Situation Report #11 on the Syria emergency response to displacement from Lebanon: All information from 11-17 November 2024, valid as of 18 November at 14:00

UNRWA

19 Nov 2024
Key Points

• An estimated 528,000 people have been displaced from Lebanon to Syria since 24 September, according to UNHCR
• As of 17 November, 1,184 displaced Palestine Refugee families (an estimated 5,920 people) had approached UNRWA in Syria. Another 17 families have now reportedly returned to Lebanon and one family has reportedly moved onwards to Iraq.
• 938 heads of households (2,764 people) have so far responded to UNRWA's displacement monitoring questionnaire. Out of the interviewees, over 78 per cent are women and children, and one per cent are people with disabilities.
• Most of the above interviewees continue to be hosted by extended family and friends in increasingly crowded and deteriorating conditions. Over 91 per cent of them travelled with all their family members. Close to 56 per cent of them had previously lived in Syria and had fled the country during the crisis there. About 78 per cent of this group returned to the area or location where they lived before they fled Syria, and about 95 per cent cited the security situation in Lebanon as the key factor behind their decision to return to Syria.
• During by UNRWA to homes that have taken in displaced Palestine Refugees from Lebanon, the reverberating message has been that the ability of families to continue hosting them has severely dwindled.

Overall Situation

• On the14 November, an Israeli missile attack launched from Lebanese airspace impacted Al Mouh Bridge near Al Qusair town, close to the Syrian-Lebanese border in south rural Homs, affecting an unofficial crossing point used by people fleeing Lebanon. From 26 September to the present, this marks the 34th attack in Al Qusair.

UNRWA response overview

• UNRWA's response to the displacement includes information-sharing and referrals; inclusion in UNRWA's pre-existing core education and health services; and the distribution of emergency relief and multipurpose cash assistance.
• Palestine Refugees displaced from Lebanon to Syria are receiving the same UNRWA services (including health and education) as Palestine Refugees already living in Syria. However, the increasing numbers and inadequate funding received by the Agency this year areputting a strain on these services.
• UNRWA's Syria office has received a contribution of US$ 200,000 for multi-purpose cash assistance and hospitalization from the Agency's regional flash appeal. However, this is only about 13% of what is required for this response for October-December 2024.

Programmatic & Operational Response

Health

• UNRWA continues to provide primary health care services in its clinics, in addition to referral services to contracted hospitals, x-ray centres and laboratories as needed.
• With UNRWA's system-wide E-health system, UNRWA doctors in Syria are able to access patient medical records online from their files in Lebanon in order to provide quality care.
• As of 17 November, a total of 1,286 Palestine Refugees displaced from Lebanon had received medical services from UNRWA in Syria. 233 of these were new patients who received treatment between 11-14 November.
• Services provided include treatment for non-communicable diseases, maternal and childcare, dental care, psychological and psychiatric care, hospitalization, among others.

Protection

• Palestine Refugees displaced from Lebanon participated in awareness-raising activities where they received key messages on the Prevention of Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (PSEA) as part of the emergency response.
• UNRWA social workers are conducting visits to homes hosting displaced Palestine Refugees.
• Psychosocial support activities are being conducted for children from displaced families.

Non-Food Items (NFIs)/ Multipurpose Cash Assistance

• Since the beginning of the response, UNRWA has provided 795 families (2,459 people) with NFI kits including blankets, jerrycans, kitchen sets, mats, mattresses, and tarpaulins. Distributions continue, and UNRWA anticipates that an additional 50 families will be reached this week.
• To date, 716 families (2,127 individuals) have received the first round of multipurpose cash assistance with a transfer value of US$ 50 per family.
• A second round of multi-purpose cash assistance to 1,120 families (3211 individuals) will be distributed this week with a transfer value of US$ 76 for those who received the first round and US$ 126 for those who did not receive it. By end of the second round, each family should have received a total of US$ 126.

Food Assistance

• UNRWA expects to receive and distribute 600 food baskets from WFP under an agreement between both agencies.

Education

• A total of 325 Palestine Refugee children displaced from Lebanon have been enrolled in UNRWA schools in Syria. One additional student has been enrolled in the UNRWA Technical and Vocational Education Programme.
• They are receiving the same services provided to other UNRWA students, such as textbooks, back-to-school kits - which include a backpack or satchel, notebooks, and stationary - and psychosocial support. UNRWA education staff are developing materials to support students in the transition to the Syrian curriculum.
• A few reports have been received about the inability of students coming without any identification documents to have the government placement tests administered to determine which grades they are supposed to be placed in.

Quotes from female heads of Palestine Refugee families whose lived in Burj Shemali camp in Lebanon, and who fled to Syria and are being hosted by relatives and friends in Khan Danoun camp in rural Damascus:

Mrs. Ruqia: "We thank UNRWA for the genuine and essential support it has provided. While we are grateful for the assistance received, we hope that efforts will be strengthened to provide further aid that can ease the burden of daily life and help us regain some stability."

Mrs. Lamia: "We are grateful to the family who hosted us, but we are in urgent need of further assistance, particularly in the form of rent support, so that we do not burden our relatives who have opened their doors to us in these difficult times."

ENDS-