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Gallery|Humanitarian Crises

Syrian refugees in Lebanon struggling with health needs

A Lebanese NGO is supporting Syrian refugees with mobile clinics.

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Marj El Khohk refugee camp/ Please Do Not Use
AMEL, a lebanese NGO provides humanitarian assistance for the refugees in the camp, with its mobil clinic which has one hundred medical consultations per week. For the consultation, the refugees just arrive, they are not pre registered. Here, women and children are waiting to see the doctor, as the men are mostly working in the fields around. "Most of the illnesses are respiratory or digestive and due to the very bad living conditions." said Hussein, Amel's social worker. [Constance Decorde/Al Jazeera]
By Constance Decorde
Published On 20 Apr 2017

In 2011, the popular uprising against the rule of President Bashar al-Assad had major consequences, one of which is forcing millions of Syrians to flee the country. Lebanon, already struggling under complex political and socioeconomic fragility, is currently hosting the largest number of refugees per capita.

Marj El Khohk informal refugees’ camp is located in the Khiam Valley in south Lebanon. Around 500 Syrian families live there under very poor conditions. Most of them are farmers originally from Aleppo and its environs.

When they arrived at the camp five years ago, they were registered by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR); but a year ago, the registration of newcomers stopped.

In response, humanitarian organisations had to initiate strategic plans to deal with this situation, and in 2012, Amel Association launched an emergency plan to respond to the Syrian crisis, in cooperation with international and local organisations.

In Marj El Khohk, Amel Association is supporting the refugees in covering their primary health needs.

Marj El Khohk refugee camp/ Please Do Not Use
Here, a woman and her baby attend a medical consultation in AMEL's mobile clinic. In Lebanon, health service is not free, so the refugees only rely on the NGO's help. If the refugees need to have a more specific examination, AMEL also have a medical center few kilometers away. [Constance Decorde/Al Jazeera]
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Marj El Khohk refugee camp/ Please Do Not Use
Around 300 children live in this camp. Some of them go to school, but most of the time, they stay here wandering all day. Here, some children made up a game with plastic. [Constance Decorde/Al Jazeera]
Marj El Khohk refugee camp/ Please Do Not Use
This little boy, Sami, came with his father because he had stomachaches. The doctor did not find what was wrong, and the father was still worrying after the consultation. [Constance Decorde/Al Jazeera]
Marj El Khohk refugee camp/ Please Do Not Use
Mariam fled Daesh when they took Alepo. They arrived here 3 years ago, and have been registered by UNHCR. Mariam cooks the lunch in the shelter she lives in with her husband and their 4 children. "We could either die with Daesh, or die with Assad. So we flee" says Mohamad, her husband. [Constance Decorde/Al Jazeera]
Marj El Khohk refugee camp/ Please Do Not Use
The syrian refugees live in very poor conditions, in makeshifts tents. This camp is located close to the Israeli border, so the area is watched by Lebanese services. A specific "permit" is needed to come in this camp, and each newcomer receives a visit of the National Intelligence. Here, a man walks in between the linel drying outside. [Constance Decorde/Al Jazeera]
Marj El Khohk refugee camp/ Please Do Not Use
The lebanese government forbidds the refugees to build concrete shelters, as they do not want the situation to be permanent. Here, some refugees build a wooden shelter, as "it will still be better than a simple tent." said Ali, one of the men. [Constance Decorde/Al Jazeera]
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Marj El Khohk refugee camp/ Please Do Not Use
Syrian refugee children suffer a lot from this situation, as they cannot have a proper education and live in camps like this one. Here, some children play in front of their shelter. [Constance Decorde/Al Jazeera]
Marj El Khohk refugee camp/ Please Do Not Use
Children play with rocks while a man watches the hills outside the camp. [Constance Decorde/Al Jazeera]
Marj El Khohk refugee camp/ Please Do Not Use
Refugees always find a way to improve their shelters: either with some material they found, with what is donated to them. To earn a living, men work most of the time as daily workers. In urban areas, mostly 100% of the syrian children are working. [Constance Decorde/Al Jazeera]
Marj El Khohk refugee camp/ Please Do Not Use
Waste management is handled by the city of Khiam: a truck comes to pick up the garbaes. Electricity is also given for free by the city services. The toilets are provided by UNICEF. Here, some refugees gather the garbage to put them in a truck. [Constance Decorde/Al Jazeera]
Marj El Khohk refugee camp/ Please Do Not Use
Most of the camp refugees are farmers originally from Aleppo and its environs. [Constance Decorde/Al Jazeera]