Yarmouk camp again cut off after return of islamist Syrian opposition

The Yarmouk camp (Ma'an).

 The return of militants from the rebel groups al-Nusra Front and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant to Yarmouk camp in Damascus has brought back tension and "chaos," a Palestine Liberation Organization official said on Saturday.
PLO Executive Committee member in charge of refugees affairs Zakariyya al-Agha said in a statement on Saturday that the return of the rebel armed groups in violation of an agreement reached with PLO factions had brought the besieged refugee camp back to chaos and conflict.

UNRWA very worried about fate of Palestinians in Syria

The UN-organization for the Palestinian refugees UNWRA is very worried about what is happening to the different Palestinian refugee camps inside Syria. UNRWA estimates the Palestinians refugee population in Syria at almost a million people. According to a communique UNRWA issued on 30 April, about a quarter of them are now on the run: 

Refugees living in the Yarmouk camp in Damascus return home after they temporarily had to leave because of fighting. The picture is from December 2012. Many Palestinians had to leave for good since then. (Photo AFP).

Palestine refugees in Syria are being killed, injured and displaced in greater numbers than ever before, as the armed conflict continues to overwhelm refugee camps across the country.  The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) now estimates that approximately 235,000 Palestine refugees have been displaced inside Syria and is particularly concerned about news that was confirmed today on the displacement of some 6,000 Palestinians from Ein El Tal on 26 April, a Palestine refugee camp some 12 kilometres from Aleppo in northern Syria.

Months of sporadic armed engagements intensified last week, culminating in armed opposition groups occupying Ein El Tal camp in the early morning hours of 26 April and immediately declaring it a “military zone”.  Exchanges of fire ensued with forces loyal to the government who were present inside the camp. Mortars and small arms were reportedly used, damaging and destroying refugee homes and contributing to dozens of fatalities and injuries, including among Palestinian civilians. In the aftermath of the fighting, a number of young Palestine refugee men were reportedly taken away by the armed opposition groups who now remain in Ein El Tal camp, where a situation of high tension prevails.
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Events in Ein El Tal mirror the tragic experience of other Palestine refugee camps – Dera’a Camp, Yarmouk in Damascus City and Husseiniyeh, Khan Eshieh, Sbeineh, and Seida Zaynab Camps in the wider Damascus area. Ein El Tal is the latest manifestation of a cycle of catastrophic violence in which the conduct of all parties has transformed Palestine refugee camps into theatres of conflict in which heavy weapons are used, resulting in severe suffering for Palestinian civilians. 

Palestinians not really satisfied with changes to Lebanese labour laws

 Palestinian refugee camp Ein al Hilweh near Saida (Sidon).

Recent amendments to Lebanese law grant work permits to Palestinians in the private sector, and some welfare benefits. According to UNRWA, the UN’s agency for Palestinian Refugees, they are a step in the right direction. Many Palestinians, however, are less happy with the changes.
The new law took effect on 17 August. It allows Palestinians to work in all professions open to foreigners. Also work permits, which hitherto cost US$ 300, are now free of charge. On top of that Palestinians can benefit from end of service payouts from a special account in the Social Security Fund and have the right to medical treatment in the event of work-related accidents.
A major grievance of the Palestinians is that they still cannot work in professions like medicine, engineering, law, real estate management, and accountancy. The new law has changed very little, said Layla el-Ali, head of Association Najdeh (AN), a Palestinian NGO in Lebanon. 
Palestinian refugees in Lebanon are regarded as foreigners and thus effectively excluded from civil and socio-economic rights. This is in part due to the fact that several rights are conditioned on the principle of reciprocity, which in the absence of a Palestinian state creates an insurmountable impediment. Although the new law has cancelled the reciprocity principle, El-Ali said it did not go far enough. “We wanted to cancel the reciprocity laws from social law, as well as lift the ban on becoming a member of professional syndicates,” thereby allowing Palestinians permanent residency, the right to own property and access to all jobs, she said. 

In Syria some 472,000 registered Palestinian refugees have the same rights and privileges as Syrian citizens, except citizenship. In Jordan the 1.9 million registered refugees have full Jordanian citizenship with the exception of about 120,000 refugees originally from the Gaza Strip who are eligible for temporary Jordanian passports. In Lebanon there are about 425,000 Palestinians in 12 camps, according to UNRWA estimates. They constitute 10% of the population. Their socio-economic conditions are quite bad, but changes to their status are very difficult to realize. A majority of  Lebanese politicians fear that granting the mainly Sunni Moslim Palestinians the right to residency and civil rights would lead to their permannt settlement in Lebanon, thereby upsetting the delicate balance between Christians and other groups in the country.