The news of the exhumation of the body of a Syrian child from a cemetery in a Lebanese village on the pretext that the cemetery is intended for the Lebanese only provoked outrage on social media and in the Lebanese street. In response to this “racist act,” Syrian refugees were offered a piece of land to be used as cemetery in the town of Assoun in northern Lebanon.
Professor Khaled Abdel Kader said on his Facebook page on Monday that he had offered a piece of land he owned in the town of Assoun “to be a used by our Syrian brothers only.”
Abdel Kader pointed out that “I intended to offer this piece of last year, but the registration procedures in the land registry took me much time. When that tragic incident occurred, I announced I was offering this piece of land publicly. The exhumation of the body of the deceased Syrian child contravened all legal and humanitarian norms and conventions.”
Abdel Kader pointed out that some of his townsmen donated larger piece of land, but it needs to be levelled as it is located in a mountainous region, a task that I vow to take upon myself.”
Moreover, Abdel Kader, who is a professor in Islamic Sharia Law, announced the establishment of a private school, licensed school comprising a kindergarten, a primary school, and preparatory school. “The school will receive the children of the Syrian and Lebanese brothers. The Syrian students will have to pay half a premium in view of the circumstances they are going through.”
Firas Ballout, an official in the Tripoli Endowments Department, said in a statement on Monday that the exhumation of the body of the Syrian boy is outright rejected as he warned of using the incident to incite strife in the country
The Syrian National Coalition condemned the incident as it expressed its appreciation for the initiatives of the Lebanese brothers in response to what happened and for all the human voices that condemned the incident.
The Coalition expressed its hope that this positive spirit would expand in a way that is befitting the Lebanese and Syrian peoples as well as their historical and future relations. (Source: Syrian Coalition’s Media Department)
