Deportations to Syria are back on the table – Berlin changes its policy towards refugees
Chancellor Friedrich Merz announced his intention to resume the deportation of refugees to Syria, asserting that the civil war there has ended and that asylum requests from Syrians in Germany are no longer justified. During a visit to the city of Husum in Schleswig-Holstein, Merz stated that he plans to discuss this issue personally with the interim Syrian president Ahmad al-Shara, who has been invited to Germany for official talks.
Mirts confirmed that many Syrian refugees should consider voluntary return to contribute to the reconstruction of their homeland, noting that the rebuilding process will be "impossible without them." He added: "As for those who refuse to return to their country while residing in Germany, we can certainly deport them in the near future."
His statements came after comments from Foreign Minister Johan Fadibol, who recently visited Syria and expressed doubts about the possibility of a large number of refugees returning soon, due to widespread destruction and poor living conditions there. The minister said after his visit to the destroyed city of Harasta in the suburbs of Damascus: "It is very difficult for people to live here with dignity." His comments, which called for caution, sparked criticism within the Christian Democratic Union (CDU).
According to data from the Federal Ministry of the Interior, there are currently about 920 Syrians in Germany who are required to leave the country and do not hold temporary residency status. The government plans to prioritize deportations for those who have committed crimes. Although deportations to Syria have been suspended since 2012 due to the civil war, Merz believes that the situation has changed and that it is time to encourage voluntary return.
In Syria, the former ruler Bashar al-Assad was overthrown about a year ago by the group Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) led by al-Shara, who has held the position of interim president since then. The new government is reportedly seeking to open up to the West, with Syrian media reporting that al-Shara plans to visit Washington soon.
For his part, Federal Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt confirmed that negotiations are ongoing to resume deportations to Syria, noting that similar agreements have already been reached with Afghanistan. He stated that the government's goal is to deport criminals first, followed by individuals who do not have the right to reside in Germany. The Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) has also resumed processing asylum applications from Syrians, with a particular focus on young men who are able to work.
In this context, the leaders of the parliamentary group of the Christian Democratic Union, Stefan Bilger and Günter Krings, supported Merz's position, confirming that the vast majority of Syrians can now return safely to their country. Bilger stated that about 2,000 Syrians in Germany have voluntarily returned to their homeland so far, while Krings said that the reconstruction of Syria should be the responsibility of its own citizens, asking: "Who will rebuild a devastated country if not its people?"