Steel bars, water and sewage pipes in the Yarmouk camp continue to be looted
Images showing the continuation of theft and looting operations in the Yarmouk camp (the Action Group for the Palestinians of Syria (AGPS)
Looting and pillaging of civilian houses continue to take place in the Yarmouk camp, south of Damascus, despite the return of 600 displaced families.
Local Facebook pages have published images showing the stealing of reinforcement steel bars, and water and sewage pipes from the camp’s buildings, besides the ongoing pillaging and looting operations.
On 13 January, the Action Group for the Palestinians of Syria (AGPS) cited Palestinian activists saying that property theft in the camp included water and sewage pipes. Thieves and looters were seen in the camp’s neighborhoods and streets collecting pipes made of steel and plastic and loading them onto their vehicles, intending to sell them.
Enab Baladi
A complex set of conditions, stipulated by the Damascus Provincial Directorate, awaits the Yarmouk refugee camp’s displaced residents, threatening to deny many of them access to their homes.
The Damascus Provincial Directorate on 26 November announced that it will accept only certified documents that prove residents’ ownership of property in the camp. It will thus turn down return applications filed by residents who have copies of the said documents, though these copies were deemed credible proof earlier this year, Shatat Press reported on November 28.
This condition could deprive many families of their right to return home, particularly those who lost their title deeds and other relevant documents over the course of the conflict.