CANBERRA, Australia, May 7 (UPI) -- The Australian government is asking thousands of Lebanese-Australians for money to pay for evacuating them from Lebanon last year.
The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade has sent letters to the Lebanese, evacuated during the 2006 fighting between Israeli forces and Hezbollah, asking for voluntary payment of around $650 per adult and nearly $500 for children, the Australian Broadcasting Corp. reported.
A spokesman for the Islamic Friendship Association, Keysar Trad, said in a radio news program he believes payment is voluntary and mainly affects Australian citizens who were residents in Lebanon.
"I would have thought it unusual but, again, if people can afford it and they're being given the option to pay for their own transport, I think that those who can afford it will do so," he said.
