Organ trafficking ‘booming’ in Lebanon as desperate Syrians sell kidneys, eyes — BBC

By Thomson Reuters Foundation – Apr 26,2017 – JORDAN TIMES

 

A Syrian boy stands against a bullet-riddled wall in the rebel-held town of Douma, on the eastern outskirts of the Syrian capital Damascus, on Monday (AFP photo)

 

LONDON — Trade in illegal organs is a booming business in Lebanon as desperate Syrian refugees resort to selling body parts to support themselves and their families, according to an investigation by the BBC. 

A trafficker who brokers deals from a coffee shop in Beirut, identified as Abu Jaafar, said while he knew his “booming” business was illegal, he saw it as helping people in need.

He spoke to the BBC journalist Alex Forsyth from his base in a dilapidated building covered by a plastic tarpaulin in a southern Beirut suburb.

“I exploit people, that’s what I do,” Jaafar told Forsyth.

“I know what I’m doing is illegal but I’m helping people, that’s how I see it.”

“Some of my clients would have died anyway.”

 Since the Syrian conflict erupted in 2011, at least 1.5 million people have poured into Lebanon, where they make up around a quarter of the country’s population.

more:   http://jordantimes.com/news/region/organ-trafficking-booming’-lebanon-desperate-syrians-sell-kidneys-eyes-—-bbc

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