The Prospects of Transitional Justice in Libya

This paper examines the different positions that political parties produced with the onset of the refugee influx, especially in 2013. Then, it explores how Lebanon succeeded in “securitizing” the Syrian refugee issue in 2015, after the number of Syrians fleeing to Lebanon crossed one million in 2014. It reveals how internal divisions and political deadlock contributed to the securitization process. In addition to the speeches adopted by the political leaderships and the designations that openly referred to the transformation of the Syrian refugee into an existential threat, it also indicates that after the securitization process in 2015, political discourses emerged that constantly called for the return of Syrian refugees to their homeland. It reveals how Lebanon’s history, its relationship with Syria, the presence of Palestinian refugees since 1948 on its lands, and the fight against any attempt at naturalization affected Lebanon’s response to the Syrian refugee issue. This paper also examines the demographic and sectarian dimension, which mainly contributed to the securitization process, in addition to the economic difficulties that Lebanon was suffering from.