The hostility Syrian refugees contend with in Lebanon

Zahle, a Christian-majority town, has a checkered history with Syria. Residents still recall the Syrian army laying siege to Zahle during the Lebanese civil war, battling against Lebanese Christian militiamen in an unsuccessful attempt to capture the town.

"Syria tried to enter our city by force," said Maroun Ramia, a Christian Lebanese businessman in Zahle. "The Syrians have their ambitions in Lebanon, and this will never change."

Some Syrian refugees report discomfort at times in Zahle. One female refugee claimed she and her friends have faced harassment for wearing the hijab in town; another Syrian woman alleged to have been told that she would never find a house to rent in Zahle, even though she has valid Lebanese residency papers.

While registered refugees are formally entitled to receive a residency permit in Lebanon, an abundance of red tape places these papers beyond the reach of most. According to UNHCR, the UN refugee agency, just 16 percent of Syrian households report that all members above 15 years of age are legal residents. For the rest, the resulting legal uncertainty makes many fearful of passing through military checkpoints, losing their homes or livelihoods, and being deported - grave risks that become built into their everyday lives.

Hind, a shawish of three camps near Saadnayel, often travels to neighbouring Zahle to shop.

"Why wouldn't I?" she asked flatly. "I know my rights."

Hind is officially registered with the UNHCR as a Syrian refugee but does not possess a Lebanese residency card.

According to her, she has never faced discrimination in Zahle, and she knows several refugees who enjoy friendships with Zahle residents. "But yes, these relationships are individual," she said. "There aren't strong ties at the community level."

Since Lebanon's economic crisis began, Zahle's authorities have applied residency and labour laws more stringently against Syrian refugees than Bar Elias has. For example, they have forced Syrians to close unlicensed stores, evicted Syrians from homes rented informally, and rounded up unregistered refugees for deportation.

These crackdowns reflect the wider political narrative recently evoked by Hajjar, the minister of social affairs - which claims that many Syrians do not have legitimate claims to refugee status but stay there for economic incentives like accessing foreign aid and undercutting Lebanese people by working illegally. Instead, this narrative alleges

"All these accusations are directed against us," said Hind. "But we feed the economy […] whether in terms of [foreign] aid or spending our money here."

Hind's economic argument seemingly resonates with at least some of Zahle's residents. At times, the authorities have reportedly evicted Syrian tenants from houses and shops in the Zahle municipality, only to rescind the decision shortly after. In these cases, the property owners had asked the authorities to reconsider, so that they could continue receiving rent from the Syrian tenants.

Ramia, the businessman, disputes how much Syrian refugees contribute to the region's economy, claiming: "[Their] money goes to Syria […] they do not invest or spend it in Lebanon." Nevertheless, he admits that his construction company relies heavily on Syrian labourers, who request lower wages and - in Ramia's view - work harder than the typical Lebanese worker.

Abu Fares, who receives a tidy cut for dispatching his camp residents each day to work as farmhands, sees the same dependence in the agriculture sector. He claims that, as Syrian refugees grew worried after Sleiman's murder, several Lebanese farmers contacted him to dismiss fears about his community's safety - so that they would continue working.

Abu Fares mused: "Who will work and sow [the fields] for the farmer if the Syrians leave?"