Syrian refugee father hangs himself
2013-01-17 16:37
Sidon - Desperate and unable to provide for his wife and
four daughters, a Syrian refugee who swapped deadly violence in Damascus for
destitution in Lebanon hanged himself on Tuesday.
"He told us he was going to buy dinner for the
children. Later, we searched for him in the house, and found him hanging from a
noose upstairs," said his wife Rima Bakkar, who suffered a nervous
breakdown after finding her husband dead.
Previously a resident of the Yarmuk Palestinian refugee
camp in south Damascus, Mohammed Melsi, 35, was one of thousands of people who
fled the Syrian capital for what was supposed to be safe haven in neighbouring
Lebanon.
He arrived in southern Lebanon with his family about a
month ago, renting an unfurnished apartment in the Ain al-Helweh Palestinian
refugee camp.
Thousands of Syrian refugee families have set up home in
Lebanon's 12 Palestinian refugee camps where accommodation is cheaper than in
other areas of the country.
Sitting inside Ain al-Helweh's Al-Aqsa hospital, Melsi's
grief-stricken widow broke down as she recounted the family's story.
"Mohammed suffered a lot recently and was very
disappointed by the lack of opportunities here in the camp. He tried to earn a
livelihood to support us, but was unsuccessful," said Rima.
Originally from Idlib province in north-western Syria,
Melsi moved to Yarmuk camp where he worked in a textile factory.
In recent weeks, deadly clashes between rebels and
government troops have rocked the camp and a series of air strikes in
mid-December prompted tens of thousands to flee.
Although the family made it across the border to Lebanon,
Melsi was unable to make ends meet.
"Mohammed's psychological state worsened after he
was unable to pay the rent for our home or afford the milk and asthma
medication for our eight-month-old baby," Rima told AFP.
At the Palestinian Red Crescent-run hospital in the
southern port city of Sidon where Melsi's body was taken, his neck bore the
scar of the noose.
The rope was still hanging from the ceiling in the upper
storey where he killed himself. In life it had been where he went to smoke,
away from his asthmatic daughter.
Complaints from refugees
A member of the Palestinian popular committees in Ain
al-Helweh, Fuad Othman, accused international institutions of "not
fulfilling their humanitarian responsibilities" towards Syrian refugees
like Melsi.
The UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) helps registered Palestinian
refugees but its remit does not extend to Syrian refugees.
"We have received dozens of complaints from
displaced Syrians who have taken refuge in Ain al-Helweh and said they did not
receive any aid," Othman said.
"UNRWA's answer is that they are Syrians and this
aid is dedicated to the Palestinians."
The UN High Commissioner for Refugees estimates there are
200 000 Syrian refugees in Lebanon.
The Lebanese government, which has promised to keep its
border open to refugees, called in early December for $363m to cope with the
influx.
At the entrance of the now fatherless home, a group of
women gathered on the stoop, their faces pained with grief.
"The tragedies in Syria are what brought this family
here, may God help them," said Najiba Ali, an elderly neighbour, as she
rose to offer Rima her condolences.
