UN refugee company chief says returning refuges to Syria after fall of Bashar al-Assad must be ‘voluntary’ and ‘protected’.
The United Nations excessive commissioner for refugees requires “persistence and vigilance” in returning Syrian refugees to Syria after the ouster of President Bashar al-Assad.
Filippo Grandi mentioned in an announcement on Monday that the method should be “voluntary” and “protected” because the state of affairs in Syria stays “unsure”.
Grandi’s feedback got here after a number of European nations mentioned they’d suspend asylum decisions for Syrians after al-Assad’s fall.
“Persistence and vigilance will likely be vital, hoping that developments on the bottom will evolve in a constructive method, permitting voluntary, protected and sustainable returns to lastly happen – with refugees in a position to make knowledgeable choices,” Grandi mentioned.
The previous Syrian president was toppled on Sunday in a lightning offensive by opposition fighters that put an finish to greater than half a century of the al-Assad household’s rule and got here after 13 years of war.
The battle killed lots of of 1000’s of individuals and compelled hundreds of thousands to flee Syria, sparking one of many worst refugee crises in trendy historical past. Many have claimed asylum in Europe, citing worry of presidency persecution.
Only a day after al-Assad’s fall, Germany, France, Austria, Belgium and a number of other different European nations introduced suspensions of their choices on asylum requests from Syrians.
However the chance of returns relies on whether or not Syria’s new leaders prioritise regulation and order, Grandi mentioned.
“A transition that respects the rights, lives and aspirations of all Syrians – no matter ethnicity, faith or political opinions – is essential for folks to really feel protected,” the UN refugee company chief mentioned.
In considered one of its first statements after toppling al-Assad, the Syrian opposition referred to as on Syrians overseas to return and assist rebuild the nation. “Syria awaits you,” it mentioned.
Whereas Germany – house to the biggest Syrian inhabitants exterior the Center East – and different governments mentioned they have been watching developments within the war-ravaged nation, Austria signalled it might quickly deport refugees again to Syria.
Far-right politicians, usually against immigration, elsewhere made comparable calls for.
Alice Weidel of the anti-immigration Various for Germany social gathering reacted with disdain to Sunday’s mass rallies by jubilant Syrians celebrating al-Assad’s downfall.
“Anybody in Germany who celebrates ‘free Syria’ evidently not has any motive to flee,” she wrote on X. “They need to return to Syria instantly.”
A German Federal Overseas Workplace spokesman, nevertheless, acknowledged that “the truth that the Assad regime has been ended is sadly no assure of peaceable developments” sooner or later.
Amnesty Worldwide has criticised the freezes on asylum choices, stressing that “the human rights state of affairs in [Syria] is totally unclear.”
