UNRWA in Lebanon pledged to transfer cash grants to Palestinians of Syria at the earliest possible time in May and in USD or its equivalent exchange rate.

In a statement, UNRWA apologized for the delay in cash aid transfer, which it attributed to financial procedures.

UNRWA’s cash assistance represents a lifeline for the cash-stripped Palestinian refugee families who have been struggling with squalid conditions in Lebanon as a result of the multiple hardships inflicted by the coronavirus pandemic and the absence of legal protection.

In its fact sheet entitled “Syria Regional Crisis Emergency Appeal 2021”, UNRWA said that Palestinian refugees from Syria (PRS) in Lebanon are grappling with increased hardship and vulnerability, due to long-term displacement and difficult socio-economic conditions, coupled with the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to UNRWA, 87% of PRS live in poverty in the Lebanese territories.

Nearly 65% of Palestinian refugees in Lebanon (PRL) live in poverty.

UNRWA’s factsheet indicates that 257,000 Palestinian refugees in Lebanon are in need of UNRWA emergency cash assistance.

Over 470,000 refugees are registered with UNRWA in Lebanon. About 45 per cent of them live in the country’s 12 refugee camps. Conditions in the camps are dire and characterized by overcrowding, poor housing conditions, unemployment, poverty and lack of access to justice.

Palestinians in Lebanon do not enjoy several important rights; for example, they cannot work in many professions and cannot own property (real estate). Because they are not formally citizens of another state, Palestine refugees are unable to claim the same rights as other foreigners living and working in Lebanon.