Lebanon warns of dire repercussion to UNRWA decision

Lebanon warned on Saturday of dire repercussion to the UNRWA's (United Nations Relief and Work Agency) recent cut in services, mainly in education, as "it would create a social disturbance in all the Palestinian refugee camps."

"Lebanon is heading towards a catastrophe if the UNRWA would actually decrease its services and eventually would suspend them," Hassan Mneimneh, head of the Lebanese-Palestinian dialogue committee, said in a statement.

UNRWA said it had addressed UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, warning that if it could not get 101 million U.S. dollars to cover the deficit by mid-August, "the financial crisis may force the suspension of services related to the agency's education program."

Mneimneh said that "information are circulating about the intention to close around 700 schools operated by the UNRWA, which could be a catastrophe for the Palestinians and the hosting communities."

He called on the donor countries to increase aid, adding that the "beneficiaries have increased due to the Syrian crisis which led to a deficit of about 101 million dollars in the UNRWA budget, thus an immediate action is required."

The Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon are witnessing a high situation of tension following the spread of news about the UNRWA suspending its services, which would directly affect about 35,000 Palestinian students in Lebanon.

Although the UNRWA decision would affect all the hosting countries, Lebanon remains the most vulnerable because of the Syrian crisis that pushed more than 1.2 million Syrian refugees to the country.

Lebanon is also hosting more than 500,000 Palestinian refugees living in camps spread all over the country.