Rot Here or Die There

Bleak Choices for Iraqi Refugees in Lebanon

I. Executive Summary

II. Recommendations

III. Background

The Iraqi Displacement Crisis

Iraqi Refugees in Lebanon..

IV. Legal Status of Iraqi Refugees in Lebanon

The Asylum System in Lebanon..

Legal Status of Iraqi Refugees in Lebanon..

Visas and residence permits

V. Detention and Refoulement

Penalties for illegal entry or presence in the country

Conditions in Roumieh Prison..

An Impossible Choice: Indefinite Detention or Returning to Iraq..

Coerced Choices

Lebanon's Nonrefoulement Obligations

The Role of Lebanon's Judiciary

IOM's Role and Obligations

VI. Surviving in Lebanon

Obstacles to Self-Reliance..

Fear of arrest

Exploitation by employers, sponsors, and landlords

Access to education and health services

Looking to the Future: Legal Status and the Right to Work

VII. Obligations of the International Community

Financial Assistance..

Resettlement

IOM's Governing Council

Methodology

Acknowledgements