Information on the conditions under which Palestinian refugees of 1948 would be allowed to buy and own land in Ein al-Helweh camp in Sidon [LBN12449]

According to a representative of the Embassy of Lebanon in Ottawa, all foreigners, including the Palestinians, have the right to buy and own a piece of land in Lebanon (5 Feb. 1993). The representative added that a foreign is allowed to buy up to 5000 square meters of land in Lebanon (Ibid.).

According to a professor at McGill University who wrote a book on the Palestinians in Lebanon, the land on which the Ein al-Helweh camp in Sidon was built is not owned by Palestinian (5 Jan. 1992). The professor reported that the camp has grown significantly since its creation and has spilled over its originally established limits (Ibid.). With the arrival of new Palestinian refugees to this camp which is under the control of the United Nations Relief Agency (UNWRA), new houses were built on the adjacent territory (Ibid.). According to the professor, the land on which these new houses were built may have been bought by Palestinian refugees (Ibid.).

According to a Palestinian Sociologist at Queen's University in Kingston, Christian Palestinians who arrived in Lebanon in 1948 were allowed to buy and own land in Lebanon (11 Jan. 1992).

Additional and/or corroborating information on this subject is currently unavailable to the DIRB in Ottawa.

References

Embassy of Lebanon, Ottawa. 5 February 1993. Telephone Interview with Representative.

McGill University, Montréal. 5 January 1992. Telephone Interview with a Professor.

Queen's University, Kingston. 11 January 1992. Telephone Interview with a Professor.