European Parliament :

stresses that conditions are not met for the voluntary, dignified return of refugees in conflict-prone areas in Syria;

recalls the vulnerability of the refugee population in Lebanon and

stresses the need to provide adequate, predictable and multi-layered funding to agencies working with refugees in order to ensure the full provision of essential services to refugee communities in the country;

calls on the Commission to work on improving the humanitarian situation in Syria in order to address the root causes of the refugee crisis;

stresses that the return of refugees should be voluntary, dignified and safe, according to international criteria;

calls for humanitarian aid to continue to be provided to the Lebanese population and refugees, with strict controls;

calls on Lebanon to become a party to the 1951 UN Refugee Convention and to its 1967 protocol;

calls for the creation of an international task force with the participation of the EU, UN and Lebanese authorities to address the refugee question;

expresses its concern about the escalation of anti-refugee rhetoric by Lebanese political parties and ministers;

urges Lebanon, in the event of any action taken on migration, to refrain from deportation and imposing discriminatory measures and inciting hatred against Syrian refugees;

calls, in this regard, for the EU and the Member States to continue to provide funding for UNRWA and Syrian refugees;