Lebanon's Aoun urges to repatriate Syrian refugees

Lebanese President Michel Aoun urged world powers on Sunday (January 20) to "make all efforts" to enable Syrian refugees to return home, regardless of any political solution to the war there.

Aoun told an Arab economic summit in Beirut that Lebanon had proposed solutions for safe returns for the meeting to agree on.

Since conflict broke out in Syria in 2011, more than 1 million people have fled across the border to Lebanon, where aid agencies say most refugees live in extreme poverty.

The United Nations says conditions are not yet in place for safe returns. Rights groups have warned against forced returns while a Syrian peace deal remains elusive, and refugees often say they fear conscription into the Assad militia.

"Lebanon calls on the international community to make all efforts possible and provide suitable conditions for a safe return of displaced Syrians... without linking that with reaching a political solution," Aoun said.

Some 5.6 million Syrian refugees remain in five neighbouring countries - Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt and Iraq - the UN refugee agency said last month.