The United Nations refugee agency said on Tuesday that more than 21,000 people had fled sectarian violence in Syria this month for safety in neighbouring Lebanon.
The surge in displacement follows days of extreme violence in the coastal region starting 6 March, where hundreds of Alawite civilians were reportedly killed in what monitors described as sectarian attacks and “field executions”.
Many fleeing families are crossing rivers and unofficial border points on foot, arriving in Lebanon exhausted and traumatised.
“The hostilities… in early March continue to displace people on a steady daily basis” into northern Lebanon, the UNHCR statement said, reporting “21,637 new arrivals from Syria” citing figures provided by Lebanese authorities and the Lebanese Red Cross.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor said some 1,600 civilians, mostly Alawites, were killed, accusing security forces and allied groups of participating in “field executions, forced displacement and burning of homes”.
The Syrian authorities have accused armed Assad supporters of starting the violence by staging attacks on the new security forces.
The UNHCR statement said that “fleeing families are continuing to cross unofficial border crossing points including through rivers on foot, and are arriving exhausted, traumatised, and hungry”.
It noted “ongoing reports of insecurity hampering people’s movements before they reach Lebanon”.
Some 390 Lebanese families were included in the new arrival figures, the agency added.
