The Halting of Reconstruction of Nahr el Bared Refugee Camp

This call comes after a court order decision taken on the 18th of August 2009 by Andre Sader, a judge in the Lebanese Legislative Council, ordering to freeze the backfilling process of the archeological site in Nahr el Bared reconstruction project, for 2 months. The halting of backfilling is in essence a stopping of the commencement of reconstruction in Nahr el bared.

This action comes after two years of delaying bureaucratic procedures, where every decision concerning the reconstruction project, including planning and design decisions of the master plan, required governmental, ministerial and political approvals. More significantly this is the first time that a decision which halts actual work on site is taken, hence prolonging the displacement period of more than 20,000 Palestinian refugees. This document aims at updating on these recent developments; it presents background information about the halting procedures, and explains the community’s perspective and reactions to the mentioned actions.