Maha Yahya is the director of the Carnegie Middle East Center. Currently, she is leading a major project on a Syrian refugee return from Lebanon, and has long been following the topic very closely.

Last week, she published an article at Diwan, titled “The Perils of Side Arrangements,” the latest in a number of articles she has written on the refugees in recent months. These include “Blaming the Victims,” from July 31, a photo essay on the Za‘tari refugee camp in Jordan, from May 8, and “Broken Peaces,” from March 31. Diwan sat with Yahya in late August to discuss the broader prospects for Syrian refugees and their return home in light of fresh political developments in Syria and Lebanon.