News:

On the 6th of February, Al-Jazeera reported on the dire situation facing thousands of Syrian refugees in Lebanon who were left homeless due to the country's army clearing refugee settlements in areas that border Syria as a result of perceived security threats. This recent decision made by the Lebanese authorities is said to affect 32 informal settlements housing around 7000 Syrian refugees and labourers. The Al Jazeera article stated that according to Lebanese army sources, the decision was taken to clear areas along the eastern Bekaa border, from Majdal Anjar next to the Masnaa border crossing, all the way to al-Qusayr. The piece also quoted from Abu Ahmed, a refugee from Deir Ezzor and one of those made homeless by this security sweep. He said, "The Lebanese army came in last night and broke everything; our water tanks, our shelters. Where are we supposed to let our children sleep?" He also said, "We have nowhere to go anymore; we have no idea where we'll be sleeping tonight. What are we supposed to do?"

Comment:

The misery and agonizing levels of suffering being endured by Syrian refugees is relentless. Not only are they struggling to survive in flimsy, makeshift tents with little food and sometimes no heating in the biting cold, but now due to this atrocious action by the heartless Lebanese government, thousands are now left abandoned, forced to weather the elements of a harsh winter, including freezing sub-zero temperatures without even having shelter over their heads. These secular regimes have demonstrated their utter lack of humanity! In January, it was reported that a number of Syrian refugees died near the Lebanese - Syrian border due to inadequate protection from the extreme cold and the severe weather of Storm Zina, which brought with it an onslaught of snow and rain that battered the refugee camps, including those in the Bekaa valley. These deaths included a 3 month old baby who died after being stuck at the Masnaa border crossing for 4 days; a 6 year old boy who froze to death crossing into the Shebaa area in Southern Lebanon; and a Syrian mother of two who died inside her unheated tent in Baalbek. It is also reported that the Syrian Muslim refugees are resorting to burning rubbish to keep warm despite the toxic fumes that this generates. They have been placed in an impossible situation with heartbreaking options - having to decide whether they and their children should freeze from the cold, or try and create some warmth but accept the risk of being poisoned by the fumes.

This heart-rending reality is only a fragment of the ongoing destitution and desperation that our dear brothers and sisters of Syria are suffering, having been abandoned by the conscienceless regimes of the Muslim world and the self-serving Western states who have been nothing but onlookers to this human tragedy. So many tens of thousands of Syrian Muslims are dying slow deaths due the absence of basic humanitarian needs and care from their host governments. This whole crisis has also emphasized the complete impotence of the UN and other international bodies in protecting the lives of our Ummah. They have proven utterly incapable or unwilling to take any stand against the negligence or oppressive actions of host states against their refugee populations.

So, as the attention of secular media and political circles focuses on the events in Iraq, a human catastrophe of monstrous proportions continues to play out upon our brothers and sisters in Al-Sham and the acts of barbarity of the Assad regime continues unabated. And as the regimes of the Muslim world fight wars on behalf of their Western masters rather than mobilising their armies to remove the butcher Bashar, our sisters and their children are forced to make a heartbreaking choice - to die from the bombs and bullets of a tyrant or to freeze to death in neighbouring states governed by rulers who do not carry an ounce of compassion or care for their plight?

This desperate state of our Ummah in Syria will only come to an end with the urgent establishment of the Khilafah "Caliphate" state - the shield, guardian, and protector of the Muslims. Indeed, placing trust in the international community to look after Syria's refugees only prolongs their suffering. Similarly, believing that Western governments or the UN can end the bloodshed in Al-Sham is a dangerous delusion which simply buys Syria's Pharun time to kill and maim to save his throne. So let us intensify our efforts to establish the System of Allah (swt) once again upon this earth that is the only true path to saving our oppressed Ummah in Syria and across the world from their plight. It is this state alone, built purely upon Islam that will mobilise its soldiers without hesitation or delay to liberate the Muslims from their oppressors, and care for them with the affection that a father cares for his child - for Islam accepts nothing less of a ruler and leadership.

«‏إِنَّمَا الْإِمَامُ ‏‏جُنَّةٌ ‏ ‏يُقَاتَلُ مِنْ وَرَائِهِ وَيُتَّقَى بِهِ»

"Indeed the Imam (Khaleefah) is a shield from behind whom (one) would fight and one would protect oneself."

Written for The Central Media Office of Hizb ut Tahrir by
Dr. Nazreen Nawaz
Member of the Central Media Office of Hizb ut Tahrir