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Syrian refugees: A permanently temporary life

Syrians in Lebanon hoped to return home within months, but more than five years later Syria’s war is still raging.

Many children populate the informal Jarrahia settlement. [Changiz M Varzi/Al Jazeera]
Many children populate the informal Jarrahia settlement. [Changiz M Varzi/Al Jazeera]
By Changiz M Varzi
7 Oct 2016

As the war in Syria grinds on, millions of Syrian refugees continue to live in limbo, waiting for the day that they can return home.

Over the years, the temporary living conditions of displaced Syrians have taken on a sense of permanence. The more than one million Syrian refugees in Lebanon were supposed to return home within months, but more than five years later Syria’s war is still raging.

Inside Jarrahia – an informal refugee settlement in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley, about 15km from the Syrian border – a dense network of improvised shacks resembles an impoverished slum. This is one among thousands of informal settlements in the country where Syrian refugees face a tough battle for survival.

Advertisements for jewellery are used to cover shack walls. [Changiz M Varzi/Al Jazeera]
Advertisements for jewellery are used to cover shack walls. [Changiz M Varzi/Al Jazeera]
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Four people, including three children, died in a fire that tore through Jarrahia last year owing to an electrical failure. [Changiz M Varzi/Al Jazeera]
Four people, including three children, died in a fire that tore through Jarrahia last year owing to an electrical failure. [Changiz M Varzi/Al Jazeera]
Children pulled out whatever they could find from the ashes of burned huts. The fire laid waste to much of the settlement, displacing hundreds of residents for a second time. [Changiz M Varzi/Al Jazeera]
Children pulled out whatever they could find from the ashes of burned huts. The fire laid waste to much of the settlement, displacing hundreds of residents for a second time. [Changiz M Varzi/Al Jazeera]
Many refugees even lost their official refugee status documents. [Changiz M Varzi/Al Jazeera]
Many refugees even lost their official refugee status documents. [Changiz M Varzi/Al Jazeera]
According to Syrian refugees in Jarrahia, it has cost them more than $1,000 to rebuild each destroyed shack. [Changiz M Varzi/Al Jazeera]
According to Syrian refugees in Jarrahia, it has cost them more than $1,000 to rebuild each destroyed shack. [Changiz M Varzi/Al Jazeera]
Each family pays $40 a month for renting the land for their hut and $20 for electricity. [Changiz M Varzi/Al Jazeera]
Each family pays $40 a month for renting the land for their hut and $20 for electricity. [Changiz M Varzi/Al Jazeera]
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Volunteers in Jarrahia have been working with a Lebanese NGO on a "winterization project" to distribute winter hats, but refugees say this is not enough. [Changiz M Varzi/Al Jazeera]
Volunteers in Jarrahia have been working with a Lebanese NGO on a "winterization project" to distribute winter hats, but refugees say this is not enough. [Changiz M Varzi/Al Jazeera]
The settlement's population has increased over the years to about 1,300 people. [Changiz M Varzi/Al Jazeera]
The settlement's population has increased over the years to about 1,300 people. [Changiz M Varzi/Al Jazeera]
Donated pairs of shoes are lined up in the sun. Throughout the 2015 winter, residents of Jarrahia resorted to burning shoes to warm up their huts. [Changiz M Varzi/Al Jazeera]
Donated pairs of shoes are lined up in the sun. Throughout the 2015 winter, residents of Jarrahia resorted to burning shoes to warm up their huts. [Changiz M Varzi/Al Jazeera]
Mostafa, who has lived in Jarrahia since 2013, lost all of his belongings in the 2015 fire. His wife is expecting a new baby, who will be born stateless. [Changiz M Varzi/Al Jazeera]
Mostafa, who has lived in Jarrahia since 2013, lost all of his belongings in the 2015 fire. His wife is expecting a new baby, who will be born stateless. [Changiz M Varzi/Al Jazeera]
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