Hundreds of Palestinian refugees, waving Palestinian and Canadian flags, gathered on Thursday outside the Canadian Embassy near Beirut, requesting asylum in the country. Many among the group lamented the deteriorating economic and living conditions in Lebanon and said they want a more dignified life. The protest was organized by the Palestinian Youth Organization for Humanitarian Relief in Lebanon and the Youth Movement for Palestinians in Syria. The periodic protests outside the embassy on the coastal highway north of Beirut began a few weeks ago, after a crackdown on undocumented foreign labor by Lebanese authorities. There are tens of thousands of Palestinian refugees and their descendants in Lebanon. Most of them live in squalid camps with no access to public services. Unlike other foreign workers, Palestinians cannot return to their homeland, have no ownership rights and often lack the documents required to get a work permit. Thursday’s protesters also decried what they say is widespread corruption at the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA).