Pro Asyl is not the only one warning: There is neither protection, security nor lasting peace in Syria

dossier

"The public debate keeps boiling over whether the war in Syria is long over and the country is safe enough for deportations. It is not. Any debates about return ignore the life-threatening reality in Syria. (…) The fact is that almost all Syrian refugees (99.8%) are granted protection by the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) (…) The extremely high protection rate speaks volumes even in the eighth year of the bloody Syrian conflict. (…) There is a similar picture with the revocation procedures (...) Massive fighting continues to take place in Syria. The increasingly widespread view that the war is almost over is wrong..." Post from September 25, 2019 by and at Pro Asyl – see also:

• Federal Interior Minister Dobrindt wants to broadly revoke the protection status of Syrians - even if Syria is unstable and dangerous
  • Federal Interior Minister wants to broadly revoke protection status for Syrians
    "...Federal Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt (CSU) wants to instruct the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (Bamf) in Nuremberg this fall to revoke the protection status of Syrians across the board. The editorial network Germany (RND) learned this from several leading CDU interior experts in the Bundestag. The domestic policy spokesman for the CDU/CSU parliamentary group, Alexander Throm, told the RND: "The revocation review should begin alone Young traveling men who receive social assistance, i.e. who do not work and are burdened by the state. People such as doctors or nurses who work have the opportunity to switch to a work residence permit. (…) The CDU politician added: "In parallel with the revocation, there needs to be a better program to promote the voluntary return of Syrian refugees. This should increase the incentive to leave voluntarily. Because every voluntary departure is cheaper than a forced deportation." (…) The “Neue Zürcher Zeitung” recently reported that the instruction should come after the state elections in Berlin and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. According to reports, the number of Syrians receiving basic security was around 450,000 in the spring - out of well over 900,000 Syrians in total..." Article by Markus Decker from September 21, 2026 at RND 
  • PRO ASYL on the debate about deportations to Syria and the revocation of protective status: Syria is unstable and dangerous
    “PRO ASYL criticizes the announcements by Federal Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt that both deportations and supported returns to Syria are to be expanded.
    The announcement by Federal Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt that the protection status of more and more Syrians will be revoked and that he will particularly focus on “young men traveling alone” is alarming. The protection of a person is determined neither by political objectives nor by questions about whether someone can make a living - what is decisive is the situation and individual risk in the country of origin. Anyone who talks about revocations and deportations to Syria must first talk about the reality on the ground. And it is still unstable and dangerous,” says Tareq Alaows, refugee policy spokesman for PRO ASYL…”Press release from September 22, 2026 with information about the situation in Syria
• Visit by Ahmed al-Sharaa legitimizes his rule in Syria, warnings about deportation deals go unheeded, criticism of Merz's demands for return grows louder 
  • Syria debate by Merz: “How presumptuous is it to view people as a mass that can be pushed back and forth?” 
    “What is Merz's purpose in his debate about Syrian people who make their lives in Germany? Interview with Timmo Scherenberg from the Refugee Council.
    It is not the first time that Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) has started an unnecessary debate with a statement. In the current case, it concerns the future of Syrians living here in Germany. What is the result of his initiative – and what could Merz actually achieve with it? Timmo Scherenberg explains the damage caused in an interview with the Frankfurter Rundschau from Ippen.Media. Scherenberg has been managing director of the Hessian Refugee Council since 2005. (…)
    The much more interesting question is: How does the Chancellor of this country come up with the idea of ​​wanting to “get rid of” large groups of people who have lived in Germany for many years, who have friends, jobs and their networks here, whose children were born here and who don’t even know Syria? These are people whose center of life has been Germany for years! How presumptuous is it to present yourself as Chancellor and view them as a mass that can be pushed back and forth? (…)
    Almost all people from Syria have protection status and a residence permit here. Only a tiny fraction are required to leave the country - and these are mostly people who are recognized in other EU countries and would have to be deported there, but not to Syria. Theoretically, you can of course revoke your protection status if the need for protection no longer exists, but this has to be done individually in each individual case, and this can also be brought before the courts in each individual case. Such a large number of lawsuits would completely paralyze the administrative courts for the next few years. And that only concerns the question of protection status. Many people are still entitled to other residence permits, even if they may not have known about it or have applied for it, be it as a skilled worker or, for example, because of a long stay and integration. This means that they have a right of residence in Germany, regardless of what the situation is in Syria. After the long time that most Syrians have now lived in Germany, this will apply to a clear majority of people. (…)
    He is adopting, and not for the first time, positions that normally come from the far right, and in doing so he is making demands that will inevitably fail due to reality. By adopting it, he "ennobles" these positions as being compatible with parts of the CDU, which takes away the right-wing extremist connotation that the term "remigration" - and nothing else is the demand for the deportation of over 700,000 people - certainly has. In this way he makes right-wing extremist positions socially acceptable, but cannot implement them as announced, which in the end benefits the AfD, which can say: We want the same thing, but then do it too…”Comment by Katja Thorwarth from April 3, 2026 in the FR online 
  • Broad criticism. Merz: 80 percent of Syrians should return within three years
    “Friedrich Merz names an 80 percent mark for the return of Syrians seeking protection - and this is met with resistance. Criticism comes from the SPD, the Greens, the Left, clinics and migration research. There is even criticism from the CDU: the Chancellor is playing into the hands of the right.
    During the visit of the Syrian interim president Ahmed al-Sharaa to Berlin on Monday, Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) called for a comprehensive return of Syrians from Germany. In the next three years, “around 80 percent” should return to their homeland, said Merz at a joint press conference…”Report from March 31, 2026 in Migazin 
  • Criticism of the return debate
    “Friedrich Merz is calling for 80 percent of all Syrians to leave the country within three years
    Following Chancellor Friedrich Merz's (CDU) push to encourage around 80 percent of Syrians living in Germany to return to their home country in the next three years, a broad debate has broken out about its feasibility and consequences. The statement was made last Monday after a meeting with the Syrian interim president Ahmed al-Sharaa in the Chancellery. Merz justified the target with the wishes of the Syrian government and at the same time emphasized that the civil war was over and that there was fundamentally a prospect of return.The Federal Press Office subsequently changed the wording to the 80 percent target. The official version of the minutes made it clear that this was a wish of the Syrian side…”Article by Patrick Lempges from March 31, 2026 in ND online 
  • Merz’s Syria fantasy and the brutal reality
    “On March 30, 2026, Chancellor Merz will send a message to around 900,000 Syrians living in Germany that reads in plain language: “Go! And 80 percent of you and within the next three years.” Castles in the air are built from such wishful thinking, but not a safe Syria…”Report from March 31, 2026 from Pro Asyl with extensive information about the location and before:
  • PRO ASYL and refugee councils on the visit of Ahmed al-Sharaa: No deportation deals on the back of human rights! Reception of al-Sharaa legitimizes its rule
    “PRO ASYL and state refugee councils sharply criticize the federal government's reception of the Syrian ruler Ahmed al-Sharaa planned for this Monday. Even after the massacres in Syria against Alawites, Druze, Kurds and other minorities, the federal government is welcoming a man whose troops are involved in the most serious human rights crimes.
    “It is a fatal contradiction when German politicians invoke human rights while at the same time cooperating with actors who are responsible for serious human rights violations,” explains Emily Barnickel from the Berlin Refugee Council. “Such a policy contributes to the normalization of violent regimes and undermines the protection of refugees.”
    "The talks with the Islamist interim president threaten above all to fuel a cynical and completely unrealistic repatriation debate in Germany. Necessary cooperation in reconstruction in Syria must be linked to clear human rights standards and the effective protection of minorities," says Karl Kopp, Managing Director of PRO ASYL.
    Reception of al-Sharaa legitimizes its rule
    While the reconstruction of Syria and the deportation of refugee Syrians are being negotiated in Berlin, violence against marginalized population groups in the country is growing: Kurds, Yazidis, Druze, Alawites and LGBTQIA+ people are affected by displacement, violence and destruction of civil infrastructure. Even if parts of the federal government are desperately trying to paint a different picture: Syria is still more than a year after the fall of the Assad regimenot sure . 
    The state refugee councils and PRO ASYL warn against such cooperation without effective human rights conditions: it leads to the political legitimacy of a regime that continues to stand for violence and expulsion of religious or ethnic groups as well as LGBTQIA+ people…”Press release from March 30, 2026 from PRO ASYL and the refugee councils of the federal states 
• The federal government is once again deporting criminals (narcotics offenses) to Syria – despite the “tense” security situation
  "While the army and Kurdish militias continue to fight, the federal government is deporting a criminal to Syria. It is the fourth deportation since the fall of Assad.
  The federal government has again deported a criminal to Syria. The 29-year-old man was taken directly from a detention center in Baden-Württemberg to the airport and flown to Damascus on a scheduled flight, a spokeswoman for the Federal Ministry of the Interior said. It is the fourth deportation of a Syrian criminal since December 2025, when the federal government resumed deportations to the Arab country. According to the Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Justice and Migration, the man was sentenced to several years in prison for numerous drug-related offenses. After the civil war broke out in Syria in 2011, deportations there were suspended. The situation changed with the fall of long-time ruler Bashar al-Assad in December 2024. So far, deportations to Syria have been limited to convicted criminals. (…) Meanwhile, the security situation in Syria remains tense. Syrian head of state Ahmad al-Sharaa postponed his planned visit to Berlin at the end of last week after fierce fighting broke out between government troops and Kurdish militias in Syria. (…) Although a ceasefire agreement was announced on Sunday, according to the Kurdish self-administration, the attacks are continuing. The background to the conflict is the planned integration of Kurdish groups into the Syrian army. They fear repression if they give up their autonomy to the Islamist leadership. Last summer there were also clashes between fighters from the Druze religious minority and Sunni Bedouins. Hundreds of Druze were killed, apparently with the involvement of Syrian government troops.At the same time, crimes against Bedouins are said to have occurred.” Report from January 21, 2026 in Zeit online (“Federal government deports criminals to Syria again”)
  • See also our dossier:In the shadow of Afghanistan and Ukraine: Türkiye bombs in northeast Syria and northern Iraq
• On the anniversary of the fall of the Assad regime: Syria is still not safe - politicians and authorities ignore reality
  “One year after the fall of the Assad regime, the situation in Syria continues to be characterized by violence, political repression, armed militias and massive humanitarian needs. No one should be deported back to this unsafe country against their will. PRO ASYL is therefore calling for a nationwide stop to deportations to Syria and an end to the standardized rejection of asylum applications. Instead, the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) must consistently and precisely examine each individual case…”Press release from December 5th, 2025 
• There is no stability in Syria for a long time: even the invitation to Syria's head of state does not change the catastrophic humanitarian emergency that prohibits deportations
  • PRO ASYL: There is no stability in Syria for a long time
    “With the one published todayPosition paper “No security in Syria” PRO ASYL shows how precarious and unstable the situation in the country is. Anyone who still wants to force Syrian people to leave the country or even deport them is ignoring Germany's human rights and international law obligations. The federal government must issue a nationwide ban on deportations to Syria and offer security in Germany to those who have fled there.
    "14 years of war, destroyed infrastructure, humanitarian need and lack of security. And Union politicians can once again think of nothing other than to call for deportations. In doing so, they are alienating hundreds of thousands of people who have long felt that they belong to our society," says Tareq Alaows, refugee policy spokesman for PRO ASYL. “Instead of having these unrealistic debates, the federal government should talk about how Germany can support the building of democracy and the reconstruction of Syria,” Alaows continues. (…)
    PRO ASYL demands, among other things, from the German federal government:
    –    Nationwide ban on deportations to Syria, because returns to a country where people are exposed to serious human rights violations and impoverishment violate international law.
    –    Prompt recognition of asylum applications if threats or persecution are clearly evident (e.g. for members of ethnic, religious or other vulnerable groups). Stop decisions on all other asylum applications as long as the situation in Syria is unpredictable.
    –    Resumption of family reunification with those entitled to subsidiary protection and acceleration of family reunification with refugees from Syria recognized in Germany.
    – Humanitarian reception programs for particularly vulnerable people.
    – Traveling home must not lead to the revocation of protection status, because anyone who briefly stays in Syria to investigate the situation there does not fulfill any grounds for revocation.”Press release from November 4th, 2025 
  • Syrian refugees: Merz’s reasons of state. Cyrus Salimi-Asl criticizes the invitation to Syria's head of state
    “…According to the Chancellor's very own reason of state, which is free from humanitarian guidelines, what his Foreign Minister recently stated during a visit to Syria does not apply: it is not possible to live there humanely. Returnees can expect destruction, a precarious security situation, unemployment and discrimination against minorities. Merz's pact with an authoritarian ruler who doesn't care about protecting minorities is fatal for Syrian Alawites and Druze, as they were victims of massacres in which government troops and militias also took part. Alawites, who are generally labeled as Assad supporters, face reprisals and acts of revenge in Syria. If the federal government wants an inclusive Syria, it must pressure the interim government, which is concentrating power in the hands of Sunni Arabs, to change its policies. This is not possible with Ahmad Al-Sharaa.”Comment by Cyrus Salimi-Asl from November 4th, 2025 in ND online 
  • Jens Spahn deliberately left out on the right
• UN refugee agency warns of collapse: Syria is overwhelmed with returnees, but Dobrindt wants to push forward deportations - by no means “just” for “criminals”
  “Federal Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt (CSU) not only wants to deport criminals to Syria, but also other young Syrians without residency rights. To this end, he has instructed the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees to process asylum applications from Syrians again, as he had already announced. These are applications “primarily from young, able-bodied men,” as a ministry spokeswoman confirmed after the tabloid “Bild” first reported on the details. Dobrindt also wants to deny asylum to Syrians who returned to visit their country after fleeing. However, the prerequisite for any deportations is an agreement with the new government in Damascus. "We are working on an agreement with Syria so that repatriations are possible. We want to start repatriations with criminals" (...)
  UN: Syria overwhelmed with returnees
  The head of the UN refugee agency in Syria, Gonzalo Vargas Llosa, warns against a forced return of Syrian refugees from Germany. This year alone, a million Syrian refugees from neighboring countries will return to their old homeland, and another million are expected next year. “Syria is at its limit, the reception capacity has already been exhausted,” said Vargas Llosa to the “Süddeutsche Zeitung” in an article published online on Sunday. If refugees were now sent back from countries like Germany, that could only worsen the situation…”Report from October 12th, 2025 in Migazin (“Syria overwhelmed with returnees: Dobrindt wants to deport”)
• The European Court of Human Rights has doubts about Austria's assessment of the situation in Syria: Are Dobrindt's deportation plans also shaky?
  "... It's worth taking a quick look at neighboring Austria. Because Austria has already deported a man to Syria - he has been missing since then. Austria is the only EU country that deported to Syria after Assad's fall. However, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) made an explosive decision last week and temporarily stopped a second deportation - it had still approved the first. The court now has doubts about Austria's assessment of the situation in Syria. The government should, among other things, inform the court whether the risks of An interim order states that the death and torture of the deportation candidate have been taken into account. Does the court order also have a signal effect for Germany (...) The Federal Ministry of the Interior is unimpressed by the temporary stop for Austria and states: "It is a decision in relation to an individual Austrian case. We do not know the exact circumstances of the individual case." The ministry has not received the decision, but they are aware of it. When asked by t-online, the ministry made it clear that they are sticking to carrying out returns to Syria as agreed in the coalition agreement. The compatibility of a return with the European Convention on Human Rights will be checked by the responsible authorities before a return. (…) There is clear criticism of the federal government's plans from the opposition.In view of the security situation in Syria, a debate about deportations to Syria is prohibited, warns Luise Amtberg, acting foreign policy spokeswoman for the Greens in the Bundestag. “The fact that the Union continues to stick to these plans is devastating,” Amtberg told t-online. The ECHR’s order showed that the deportation plans “are clearly incompatible with the law and our fundamental values”. (…) Unlike the German opposition, you see this in Austria. They want to continue deportations to Syria and see no need to correct course. Austria's Interior Minister Gerhard Karner said Syria is "more stable than some people think and more stable than some people want." His Syrian counterpart assured him of this.” Article by Julia Naue from August 19, 2025 at t-online (“Explosive decision: Are Dobrindt’s deportation plans shaky?”)
  • See also the dossier:Tougher rules for refugees: Interior Ministry wants, among other things, to increase the number of deportations - including to Syria/Afghanistan?
• No exploratory trips: Dobrindt is working on lifting the protection status of Syrians
  "The former Federal Interior Minister Faeser had promised Syrians in Germany reconnaissance trips for a possible return. This is not an option for the new Interior Minister Dobrindt. He is checking whether their protection status can be revoked. The criticism is sharp.
  The Federal Ministry of the Interior has begun the process of revoking the protection status of certain refugees from Syria. (…) “The existence of serious crimes excludes protection recognition by the Bamf or can lead to the protection granted being revoked,” said the spokesman for the ministry headed by Alexander Dobrindt (CSU). (…) According to a response from the Interior Ministry to a request from the AfD parliamentary group, which was available to the AFP news agency on Saturday, the Bamf created a total of 3,537 revocation check procedures for Syrian citizens between January and May 2025. By the end of May, refugee status had been withdrawn in 57 cases, and a so-called subsidiary protection title had been withdrawn in 22 further cases. The answer also shows that between January and the end of May there were 804 voluntary departures by Syrians as part of the federal-state funding program REAG/GARP. (…) When asked, a spokesman said: “After careful examination, the Federal Ministry of the Interior has decided against allowing short-term trips home for Syrians without affecting their protection status.” (…)If the Bamf becomes aware of a person entitled to protection traveling home, it is obliged to check in each individual case whether the protection granted should be revoked. (…) Criticism of the repatriation plans came from the Greens and the Left. “Instead of debating revocation procedures, which are not appropriate due to the current situation in Syria, paths must be created for permanent and secure prospects of staying,” said Green Party member of the Bundestag Filiz Polat to the newspaper.“It is particularly important that procedures, such as naturalization, can be completed quickly,” she demanded. (…) The fact that long-time ruler Bashar al-Assad is no longer in power in Syria does not mean “that the country is safe,” said the migration policy spokeswoman for the Left Party, Clara Bünger. There continue to be “massive violent clashes, especially against various minorities”. A normal life is impossible in Syria. Against this background, revocations of existing protection titles would “not be considered purely legally, but also for humanitarian reasons”. “Open asylum applications should now be examined quickly and sympathetically,” demanded Bünger...” Report from July 6, 2025 in MiGAZIN 
• Interior Minister Nancy Faeser is canceling a trip to Syria because of the risk of an attack - but the country is safe enough for deportations
  • Faeser cancels his visit to Syria: But the country is safe enough for deportations
    “Interior Minister Nancy Faeser cancels a trip to Syria because of the risk of an attack. She is sticking to the plan to send Syrians back soon.
    Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD) was supposed to fly to the Syrian capital Damascus on Thursday morning to discuss deportations. Since the Assad regime was overthrown by rebels there, many German politicians have wanted to send Syrian refugees back. But Faeser unintentionally demonstrated why this could mean a journey to death for those affected. Her flight had to be canceled because there was apparently a threat of a terrorist attack. According to the Federal Ministry of the Interior (BMI), there were “specific warnings from the German security authorities”. (…) Other plans by Faeser are also “still valid”, with the BMI asserting that they are “keeping security issues in mind”. The Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (Bamf) is supposed to check the protection status of Syrian refugees who are already here. Only “those who are well integrated, work, have learned German and have found a new home here” should be allowed to stay. The BMI also wants to further promote the voluntary return of Syrians, while open asylum procedures for Syrian refugees remain suspended. Under a possible Federal Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU), the course is likely to become even stricter: the SPD and the Union have already agreed to soon generally deport Syrians, even without a criminal record…”Article by Frederik Eikmanns from March 27, 2025 in the taz online 
  • “If you want to travel to Syria to negotiate the deportation of people to this supposedly safe country and the trip is canceled because the security situation in Syria does not allow it. The understanding of human rights in German politics in a nutshell.”Post by MISSION LIFELINE INTERNATIONAL from March 27, 2025 on bsky 
  • Faeser is exploring options for returning to Syria
    “The acting Federal Interior Minister Faeser is in Jordan looking for ways in which Syrian refugees can return to their homeland. Jordan also hopes that the majority of Syrian refugees will return home. At the same time, the government in Amman is appealing for patience. (…) Even if a lot is still unclear, the new rulers in Damascus should be given a chance. As long as there is a lack of electricity, clean drinking water, living space, medical care and schools in many places in Syria, Syrian refugees cannot be pressured into a hasty return. (…) For many refugees, the hope for peace after the overthrow of Syrian ruler Bashar al-Assad is linked to the hope of returning and rebuilding their country, said Faeser after her arrival in Amman, where she first spoke with Interior Minister Masen al-Faraja. Faeser and Karner share an interest in making it possible to deport criminals and those at risk to Syria in the future…”Article from March 27, 2025 in Migazin 
• Against populist propaganda on the backs of the Syrians: Syria is neither stable nor safe - this is what the doctors are ultimately told...
  • Between uncertainty and hope – impressions from Syria and demands on German politics
    “PRO ASYL firmly opposes attempts by leading German politicians to suggest to the public that Syria is safe and that many Syrian refugees could return in the near future. This is populist propaganda on the backs of the Syrians.
    "What is needed now is an attitude, instead of agitation! Instead of pushing away and frightening Syrian refugees who live in Germany and have long since become part of society, we need a clear message: The Syrian community is part of Germany and will remain so," says Tareq Alaows, refugee policy spokesman for PRO ASYL.
    Alaows traveled to Syria a few weeks ago to get his own opinion on the situation. He reported on his impressions at a press conference on January 16, 2025 and in a report here. His conclusion: “Populist calls for the return of Syrian refugees living here are premature and ignore the reality on the ground: Syria is neither stable nor safe.”
    PRO ASYL also sharply criticizes statements by various politicians about wanting to review the protection status of unemployed Syrian refugees in the near future. "This is a dangerous mixing of a debate about utility with the right to protection. Such statements deeply unsettle and offend people from Syria," said Alaows…”Press release from January 16, 2025 from Pro Asyl with demands and more information about the current situation in Syria as wellthe entire travel report by Tareq Alaows 
  • “Security in Syria is not guaranteed.” After the fall of Assad, politicians called for deportations to Syria. Pro Asyl says: This is premature
    “As soon as the Assad regime fell in Syria, top German politicians from Robert Habeck to Friedrich Merz called for the repatriation of Syrian people to be made possible. The human rights organization Pro Asyl criticizes the debate and says: There is still a long way to go about security and stability in Syria. The organization's refugee policy spokesman, Tareq Alaows, was in Syria to get an idea of ​​the situation on the ground…”Article by Pauline Jäckels from January 16, 2025 in ND online 
  • Death in the desert and sea (and German interests)
    “Berlin and the EU celebrate the decline in the number of unwanted refugees. The number of deaths on the escape route to the Canary Islands reaches a record high. Berlin, on the other hand, wants to stop Syrian doctors from returning: Germany needs them. (…) While Berlin is still delaying the entry of vulnerable Afghans, it is trying to prevent Syrian doctors from returning to their country of origin: they are needed to avoid further weakening of the German health system. (…)
    However, the federal government is able to act unbureaucratically where it can use refugees as workers in shortage occupations. It has long been considering the return of Syrian refugees - especially those who have not yet found gainful employment in Germany. An exception, however, are the 5,800 Syrian doctors whose work supports the German health system; Federal Development Minister Svenja Schulze said on Wednesday during a trip to Damascus that the Federal Republic has “an interest in retaining these people” because it is “reliant” on their work.[10] According to Schulze, a significant number of Syrian doctors are considering returning to their country of origin to contribute to reconstruction there. In order to make this possible without losing the refugee doctors, Berlin is first preparing to change a regulation that previously stipulates that those in need of protection lose their protection status as soon as they travel to their country of origin. This should no longer be the case automatically in the future.[11] Schulze also holds out the prospect of so-called clinic partnerships; Hospitals in Germany cooperate with hospitals in Syria. This in turn, explains Schulze, will enable Syrian doctors to “get involved in Syria from Germany”.[12] If they remain in the Federal Republic, they will help prevent an even further weakening of the German health system.”Report from January 17, 2025 from and at german-foreign-policy.com 
• “As soon as Assad is gone, we want to know when Syrians will get the hell out of our country again” – unless they are doctors… 
  • Syrian people seeking protection: Work or deportation is (not only) the Federal Interior Minister's four-point plan“Federal Interior Minister explains four-point plan for Syrian refugees. Pressure on those affected to sell their work in the Federal Republic of Germany
    The Federal Interior Minister also wants to help the capitalists who are worried about their profits and provide them with more cheap labor: At the weekend, Nancy Faeser (SPD) confirmed the federal government's plan to increase the pressure on Syrian asylum seekers who are not yet doing wage work. Those "who do not have a right of residence for other reasons such as work or training and do not return to Syria voluntarily" are threatened with the withdrawal of their protection status, Faeser told the newspapers of the Funke media group, according to reports on Sunday. The Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF), which is responsible for asylum applications, will "review" the protection granted to Syrians "as our law provides" and "remove it if people no longer need this protection in Germany because the situation in Syria has stabilized," Faeser told the newspapers. Syrians who are “well integrated”, i.e. who are employed, have learned the German language and have “found a new home here”, should be spared from the loss of (subsidiary) protection. The Interior Minister promises these people that they will be allowed to stay in Germany. “We can’t do without them,” added SPD parliamentary group deputy Dirk Wiese to the Rheinische Post (online edition from Sunday). According to information from the Federal Ministry of the Interior, around 975,000 Syrians currently live in the Federal Republic of Germany. Most of them have come here since 2015 as a result of the war in the Arab Republic. According to the ministry, more than 300,000 of them have a so-called subsidiary protection title because they were officially admitted not because of individual persecution, but because of the war in the country.The state should offer increased support to those of them who are still allowed to decide for themselves whether they want to return to Syria or not. The federal government's program for nominally voluntary returns is to be expanded, Faeser told the Funke newspapers. These programs for the target country Syria are currently suspended indefinitely. The reason for this is the “ongoing difficult security situation,” as the BAMF and the UN program IOM said on the website returningfromgermany on Sunday. (…) In her statements distributed on Sunday, Faeser also acknowledged the demand that Syrian citizens and Islamists convicted of crimes be taken out of the country as quickly as possible. “We have greatly expanded the legal options for this and will use them,” announced Faeser – “as soon as the situation in Syria allows this.” This restriction called the Union into action. Their parliamentary group vice-president Alexander Throm (CDU) called on the Rheinische Post to actively promote the “repatriation” of Syrians now. “Refugee protection is a temporary stay,” explained the Christian Democrat. "For most Syrian refugees, the original reason for fleeing the terrible Assad regime has now disappeared," he further claimed. According to him, all Syrians “who have only been here for a short time or who have been there for a long time and are not working sufficiently” must return. In addition, family reunification for Syrians seeking asylum in the Federal Republic of Germany must be suspended immediately. Since the 9thIn December 2024, all BAMF asylum procedures, “in which information on the situation in Syria is also taken into account,” have been frozen, as the authority announced on its website...” Article by Marc Bebenroth in the Junge Welt from January 6, 2025 (“Syrian people seeking protection: work or deportation”), see also:
    • Habeck on Syrians: Anyone who doesn't work will have to leave
      “What will happen to the Syrians in Germany if the situation in their home country continues to stabilize? According to the Green Party candidate for chancellor, work is the decisive criterion. Interior Minister Faeser sees it similarly. Labor Minister Heil has a different approach…”Post from January 7th, 2025 in Migazin 
  • PRO ASYL demands: solidarity with Syrian refugees instead of cynical return debates
    “PRO ASYL criticizes the calls to pressure Syrian refugees to return. Given the ongoing chaos and violence in Syria, these demands for return are unrealistic, dangerous and irresponsible. The debate is also unsettling the Syrian community in Germany. Refugees must not be used for the election campaign…”Press release from December 10, 2024 
  • Debate about return: Bamf imposes decision-free decision on asylum procedures for Syrians
    “After the sudden fall of Bashar al-Assad in Syria, the situation is confusing. Nevertheless, a debate has broken out in Germany about the repatriation of Syrian refugees. Experts strongly warn against premature demands. What is happening in Syria still has an immediate consequence. (…) The Interior Minister confirmed that the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (Bamf) had imposed a decision-making freeze on asylum procedures that are currently ongoing until the situation becomes clearer. There are almost 47,000 asylum applications. According to the deputy spokeswoman for the Interior Ministry, Sonja Kock, almost a million Syrians live in Germany, the majority as internationally recognized refugees or civil war refugees. Legally it is possible to revoke your protection status in Germany. But what is important is whether the situation in Syria has changed permanently and stabilized. At this point it is a “fairly hypothetical question” whether the Syrian refugees would have to return. (…)The EU Commission also warns against overly high hopes for quick and unproblematic return options for refugees to Syria. According to current assessments, the conditions for a safe and dignified return do not currently exist, said a spokesman in Brussels. This line is in agreement with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). The current situation is characterized by great hope, but also great uncertainty. It will be up to each individual and each family to decide what they want to do. The spokesman also made it clear that, from the Commission's perspective, there should be no deportations until further notice…”Report from December 9, 202 in Migazin 
  • About Syrian freedom and European feminazis
    “As soon as Assad is gone, we want to know when Syrians will get the hell out of our country again. This is charity à la Cdsu. Who actually needs the new AfD mom?
    Assad is dead or on the run, people are celebrating their lack of knowledge about what the future looks like. It remains to be seen when the hangover will set in. It's a strange situation. The Assad regime in Syria was history very quickly. The situation is still volatile, no one really knows what will happen and yet the people who were expelled from Syria all over the world are celebrating in the streets of the cities, cheering the end of a tyrant.
    At the same time, German television stations and politicians are already trying to set the coming narrative. In addition, cheering people on the street are asked whether they don't want to slowly get the hell out of our country now that Assad is gone. And the CDU says that now that religious fanatics in Syria are on the verge of seizing power in the country, no one should be granted asylum here anymore. Afghanistan had already shown how well this works for everyone, but especially for women. (…)
    The demand from the self-proclaimed party of Christian charity can hardly be surpassed in terms of disgust and contempt for humanity, especially during the Christmas season, which actually plays a special role for these people. And: Anyone who is only able to see world politics through the lens of refugee policy on a day like Sunday doesn't need a firewall for the AfD, they are the AfD - and because we are close to the winter break, I would like to briefly address that too…”Comment by Sven Bensmann from December 9th, 2024 in Migazin 
  • Human rights apply equally to everyone – regardless of origin!
    “On Human Rights Day, the Berlin Refugee Council calls for the preservation of Berlin's admission rule for relatives of Afghan, Syrian and Iraqi Berliners…”Press release from December 9, 2024 from the Berlin Refugee Council on Human Rights Day
  • Assad's fall fuels fantasies of deportation. Federal Office for Migration and Refugees suspends decisions on asylum applications from Syrians
    “While people in Syria are still being freed from Bashar al-Assad's torture prisons, the debate has begun in Germany about how to get rid of the refugees from Syria as quickly as possible. (…) However, the fall of Assad also has real effects on the German asylum system. The Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (Bamf) announced on Monday that it would immediately suspend decisions on asylum applications from Syrians. This affects 47,270 asylum applications, including 46,000 initial applications. A spokesman for the authorities told Spiegel that the situation in Syria was confusing and it was difficult to estimate what would happen next. Any asylum decision that would be made at the moment would be “on feet of clay.” There are currently 5,090 Syrians eligible for asylum in Germany. 321,444 people have been granted refugee status and 329,242 enjoy subsidiary protection…”Article by Sebastian Weiermann from December 9th, 2024 in ND online 
  • Deportation to Syria: Debate in full swing despite civil war and unclear future
    “Bashar al-Assad has fallen. A stable peace is not yet in sight. What German politicians think about this – and what is known about the reasons for fleeing…”Post by Claudia Wangerin from December 9th, 2024 in Telepolis – I don’t like to quote all of that
  • After the fall of Assad: A tasteless migration debate
    “After the change of power in Syria, there is discussion in Germany about how to deal with refugees. Instead of reflexively talking about asylum decisions, we should talk about reconstruction, support and smart diplomacy.Why differentiate when it can be simple? Why human when the reflex to act on the basest instincts is so overpowering? In Syria, the butcher Bashar al-Assad is history. And here? There is talk about returns and deportations and how we can get rid of the Syrians here as quickly as possible…”Comment by Georg Schwarte, ARD capital studio, from December 9th, 2024 in tagesschau.de 
  • Hospital Society: Mass return of Syrian doctors would have consequences
    “…The fall of the Assad regime in Syria could also have indirect consequences for the local health system. The CEO of the German Hospital Association (DKG), Dr. Gerald Gaß, in any case, expects consequences if Syrian doctors should return to their home country as a result of the change of power in Damascus. Gaß told the online edition of “Spiegel” on Monday that the hospitals could understand that many Syrians wanted to return to their homeland; they are also urgently needed there. However, Syrian doctors in Germany play an important role, especially in hospitals in smaller cities, when it comes to maintaining care there. (…) According to medical statistics from the German Medical Association (BÄK), around 5,750 Syrian doctors were working in Germany at the end of 2023, almost 5,000 of them in clinics.”Report from December 9th, 2024 in aerztezeitung.de 
  • See also our current dossier:In the shadow of Afghanistan and Ukraine: Türkiye bombs in northeast Syria and northern Iraqand new in it: After the fall of Assad, Erdogan wants to live out his great power fantasies in Syria - and is using the opportunity to intensify the fight against the Kurds
  • We also remind you of the dossier:The hunt for refugees from Syria: A grand coalition across Turkey 
• PRO ASYL calls for an immediate, nationwide stop to deportations to Syria: Conference of Interior Ministers must react to dramatic developments
  “PRO ASYL is calling for an immediate, nationwide stop to deportations to the country at the Interior Ministers' Conference (December 4th to 6th) in view of the dramatic developments in Syria. If people are deported to the hostilities in Syria, they face persecution, torture, inhumane punishment or even danger to life and limb.
  "The interior ministers of the federal and state governments must now decide on a nationwide ban on deportations to Syria. The last few days have shown that there cannot and should not be talk of stability in Syria. Acts of war, human rights violations and killings are the order of the day, Syria is not safe," says refugee policy spokesman for PRO ASYL Tareq Alaows.
  Around a million Syrians live in Germany, most of them with a temporary residence permit (over 600,000), which they sometimes have to extend every one to three years.
  Minorities are particularly at risk
  Several armed groups, including Islamist militias led by the jihadist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), captured Aleppo within 72 hours. The Syrian army is severely weakened, and many soldiers are surrendering, fleeing or defecting to the jihadists. At the same time, the Assad regime and Russia are bombing towns and cities with no regard for civilians. According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, 440 people were killed within five days. A large part of the Syrian population is afraid of unrest, violence and supply shortages. Religious minorities such as Christians and Druze as well as ethnic population groups such as the Kurds are particularly at risk. They fear persecution if Islamist forces take power. The fate of the Kurds in Aleppo is completely uncertain. Minorities are leaving Aleppo out of fear…”Press release from December 3rd, 2024 with further information and demands
• Unreasonable: Refugees from Syria have to finance persecutor states with passport fees - no more euros for the Assad torture dictatorship
  • PRO ASYL on the anniversary of the Syrian revolution: No more euros for the Assad torture dictatorship
    "Today, on the anniversary of the Syrian revolution, PRO ASYL is publishing a report on the unreasonable demands on Syrians when it comes to obtaining passports and at the same time calls for an immediate stop to the financing of the Assad torture regime through the German obligation to obtain passports. (...) Due to the ongoing repression against its own civilian population, the European Union has imposed extensive sanctions on Syria in order to make it more difficult for the regime to finance its dictatorial machinations. At the same time, Syrians as well as refugees from other states have fled from the regimes of their homeland, but are regularly forced by the German immigration authorities to support their persecuting state through horrendous passport fees - even if this state is responsible for human rights violations. Above all, the authorities require a passport, for example, before issuing a settlement permit or for naturalization, a passport is also required first and foremost before other options are considered (...) “The bitter reality: With the obligation to obtain a passport, Germany plays a key role in this “Funding the brutal Assad regime and thus the atrocities it commits. Hundreds of thousands of Syrians in Germany are being forced by German authorities to pay large sums of money to the very regime from which they fled and which is also using this money to finance its crimes. That is why Syrian refugees must be freed from having to obtain passports at the Syrian embassy,” says Tareq Alaows, refugee policy spokesman PRO ASYLUM.The Assad regime has collected over 200 million euros from these arbitrarily increasing passport fees since 2022 alone. PRO ASYL supports a Syrian in his legal dispute with the immigration authorities, who want to force him into the embassy…” Press release from March 15, 2024 from Pro Asyl , see also:
  • Unreasonable: Refugees have to finance persecuting states with passport fees
    "Refugees are often asked by the authorities to obtain a passport from the embassy of their country of origin, even if the state is responsible for human rights violations and charges high passport fees. On behalf of PRO ASYL, specialist lawyer Dr. Matthias Lehnert examined what is reasonable for obtaining a passport and clarifying identity. (…) Dr. Matthias Lehnert points out in the report that the legal obligations to have or obtain a passport, see Section 3 of the Residence Act (AufenthG) and § 60b AufenthG, do not only refer to people without a passport, but also to the authorities. They have to provide information and, under certain circumstances, issue a replacement passport or ID card that also fulfills the passport requirement, see §§5-7 Residence Ordinance (AufenthV) and § 48 para. 4 AufenthG (…) The expert identifies (…) constellations in which – in principle – and not just due to individual circumstances - it can be assumed that obtaining a passport is unreasonable: Accordingly, obtaining a passport from this state is fundamentally unreasonable for people who are threatened with serious human rights violations (...) The fact that obtaining a passport is unreasonable due to high fees is usually not accepted by the immigration authorities (...) According to an estimate by the DefundAssad campaign, 274,000 euros flow to Syrians every day through passport issuance State (…) Eritreans are also affected by high payments (…) In addition, the income contributes significantly to the Eritrean state budget and thus also to the crimes committed by the regime: two reasons why the payment is unreasonable.(…) PRO ASYL calls for the results of the report to be implemented: – It is per se unreasonable for recognized refugees and those entitled to subsidiary protection who are threatened with human rights violations by the state to contact the authorities of their country of origin – even in the context of naturalization. – All those protected by subsidiary protection who are at risk of serious harm from their country of origin must receive travel documents for foreigners from the German authorities. – If unreasonably high payments are made by a state that commits genocide, crimes against humanity or war crimes when obtaining a passport, it can be assumed that the income helps finance these crimes. For this reason alone, Syrians and Eritreans must obtain travel documents for foreigners. – Applicants only have to present their individual reasons when applying for travel documents for foreigners. Reasons that generally affect obtaining a passport in the country of origin must be clarified by authorities and courts. – The clarification of identity in the right of residence requires a legal regulation that specifies which evidence and which fundamental rights concerns must be taken into account. What is needed is a legal basis for swearing under oath as a way of clarifying identity when issuing residence permits and naturalization.” Press release from March 15, 2024 from and at Pro Asyl 
  • The report from Dr. Matthias Lehnert from March 2024 is 46-pageLong version   and as a 6-pageShort version  available
• War in Syria: Deaths after refugee camps are shelled - probably with internationally banned cluster munitions
  “Troops of Syrian ruler Bashar al-Assad have fired rockets at refugee camps in the Idlib region - probably with internationally banned cluster munitions. At least nine people die, including two children. At least nine people have been killed in bombings in northern Syria, including two children. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights and the White Helmets rescue organization announced that around 70 other people were injured in artillery fire by Syrian government troops. The attacks hit several refugee camps in the Idlib region. Russian warplanes are also said to have bombed positions. The AFP news agency reports from a camp of destroyed and burned-out tents, bloodstains and rocket debris. Victims were taken to a nearby hospital. (…) Internationally banned cluster munitions are said to have been used in the bombings - many smaller explosive devices that are fired in containers from aircraft and rocket launchers…”Report from November 6th, 2022 at tagesschau.de 
• “Voluntary repatriations” from Turkey: New Gaza in northern Syria?
  "... Turkey wants to get rid of the Syrian refugees. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced at the beginning of May that he would return one million Syrian refugees to specially created "settlements" in northern Syria. Erdogan is thus continuing the population exchange and the completion of the “Arab belt” of the Assad regime of the 1960s. Until the beginning of the Syrian Civil War, Kurdish, Yazidi and Assyrian families lived peacefully alongside Arab families in northern Syria along the Turkish border. Until the Turkish army invaded in 2018, the northwestern canton of Afrin was home to a majority of Kurds of various denominations. To the northeast, some regions were more Arab or Assyrian in character. In this economically underdeveloped, multi-ethnic and multi-religious region, a democratic autonomous administration emerged in the turmoil of the civil war since 2012, which, in addition to gender equality, also aims to ensure peaceful coexistence for all ethnic groups and religions. Initially, this ambitious project was dominated by Kurds, who, with the support of the anti-IS coalition, have been able to successfully push the terrorist militia “Islamic State” out of the region since the end of 2014. Tens of thousands of young Kurds from the YPG self-defense units and Kurds from the YPJ lost their lives, and tens of thousands are injured in the war. (…) Turkey supported the jihadists with weapons and logistics and had their injured treated in its hospitals.After Afrin in 2018, Turkey occupied the northeastern regions of Serêkaniyê (Ras al Ain) and Girê Spî (Tall Abyad) in 2019 with its Islamist mercenary army SNA (Syrian National Army) and established a reign of terror in which expulsion, murder, torture, kidnapping and rape of the local population are commonplace. In these three areas occupied in violation of international law, Turkey is currently building huge “settlements” for Syrian refugees from Turkey with the help of money from Kuwait and Qatar. (…) Thousands of shelters have now been built in northwestern Afrin to house people from many Syrian cities who have fled from Assad's military and secret service. To this end, Yazidi villages were destroyed, cemeteries were razed to the ground and mosques were built on the site of Yazidi places of worship and shrines. You don't have to be an expert to see that this is a deliberate demographic change based on the displacement of the original population. (…) Important to know: The West is only of peripheral interest in democratic civil society in Turkey. Turkey consistently ignores its obligations under the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). Turkey also withdrew from the Istanbul Convention last year.  (…) International recognition of self-government is long overdue; many German NGOs are in the starting blocks in the area of ​​humanitarian aid, with development projects in the health, education and environmental sectors. However, they lack funding from the federal government.” Contribution by Elke Dangeleit from May 23, 2022 on Telepolis 
• “Ethnic cleansing.” “Türkiye is violating international law”: West remains silent about human rights violations in Afrin
  “After the occupation of Afrin, many Kurds were expelled from the city. Experts speak of “ethnic cleansing” and the West remains silent.
  Afrin – Turkey holds parts of northern Syria under its control. One of them is the city of Afrin, which was captured by Turkish soldiers and their allied Syrian jihadists in 2018. At that time the city was almost entirely Kurdish. According to Kamal Sido, Middle East consultant at the Society for Threatened Peoples (STP), Afrin was 96 percent Kurdish before the Turkish invasion. (…) Criticism of the ethnic cleansing in Afrin also comes from the International Society for Human Rights (IGHR). "What is happening there is ethnic cleansing. And the West is keeping quiet about it," criticizes ISFM board spokesman Martin Lesethin in an interview with us. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is threatening the West with millions of refugees in his own country who want to go to Europe. In addition, with his veto on Sweden and Finland joining NATO, Erdogan could also force concessions, including silencing human rights crimes in Afrin…”Article by Erkan Pehlivan from May 24th, 2022 in the FR online 
  • See also:Erdogan is planning a new attack on northern Syria / Don't let Erdogan blackmail you - Syria's Kurds appeal to NATO
• No cooperation with dictator and war criminal Assad! No deportations to Syria! Human rights organizations are calling for a stop to deportations to Syria
  “Refugee and human rights organizations are calling for a stop to deportations to Syria in a joint appeal. The country is not safe. The deportations would also normalize relations with the Assad regime. Ten years after the start of the bloody conflict in Syria, refugee and human rights organizations are calling for an end to deportations to the country. In onecommon call , which was published in Berlin on Sunday, the nine signatory organizations point out that Syria is not safe for returnees. Signatories include Pro Asyl, Sea-Watch, Medico International, Adopt a Revolution and the #SyriaNotSafe campaign. With its violent reaction to peaceful protests, the regime of ruler Bashar al-Assad bears primary responsibility for more than 500,000 deaths, around 100,000 "disappeared people", tens of thousands of people tortured to death and the displacement of over eleven million people, the appeal says…”Report from March 16, 2021 at Migazin , see also for background:
• The failure: 10 years of escape from Syria
  "The uprising in Syria began 10 years ago, which turned into a devastating civil war. A look back shows how the international community abandoned the Syrian refugees - including Germany. With the expiry of the deportation ban, rapprochement with Assad is now being tested. (...) The balance after 10 years is disastrous: According to the UNHCR, 5.6 million people have fled Syria - primarily to the neighboring countries of Lebanon, Turkey and Jordan - and another 6.6 million people are displaced within Syria under ruler B