Borders and mobilities in the middle east: Emerging challenges for syrian refugees in “bilad al-sham”

This chapter addresses the transformation of geopolitical lines and borders in a globalizing world. In the Middle East, this transformation has been accompanied by severe social inequalities that have been expressed in a number of different ways: increasing limitations placed on the mobility of refugees and migrants, yet decreasing limitations on the cross-border flow of goods; a proliferation of refugee encampments and settlements (formal and informal); human vulnerability and rights violations; and expanded border securitization. In the case of Lebanon, these processes play out in especially stark fashion in big cities and border sites. This chapter focuses on one such site in an area of Lebanon: the Central Bekaa. It is important to start by looking at the context of borders and mobility in the Middle East. This chapter is based on original research that aims to provide an examination of certain aspects of borders and mobility, including the transnational circulation of displaced communities, cross-border networks, and how Syrian refugees in the Middle East-especially in Lebanon-navigate borders and deploy their own social capital in the process.