Germany has announced that it will pause asylum processing for Syrian citizens.
This came less than 48 hours after the toppling of Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad.
An official from the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees told Der Spiegel news magazine that the move was taken in light of the unclear and unpredictable political situation in Syria, which would place asylum decisions “on shaky ground.”
No further decisions will be made on undecided asylum cases until further notice, which affects 47,770 applications by Syrian nationals.
Senior members of the opposition Christian Democratic Union (CDU), argued for Germany to begin returning Syrians to their homeland en masse.
The party is leading in polls before federal elections in February with campaign promises that include cracking down on irregular migration and increasing deportations.
Jurgen Hardt, a CDU Member of Parliament, told a news agency, “I believe that there will be a reassessment of the situation in Syria and, therefore, also a reassessment of the question of who is allowed to seek protection in our country and who is not.”
His party colleague, Jens Spahn suggested that Germany charter planes and offer 1,000 euros ($1,058) to each Syrian who returns home.
Meanwhile, a spokesperson for Germany’s Ministry of the Interior told the Funke media group that it was not yet clear whether there would be movements of refugees into or out of Syria.
The Spokesperson added that the ministry will not yet assess whether the country is safe for refugees to return to or is a safe destination for deportations.
Currently, Germany’s Federal Foreign Office does not consider Syria a safe country of return due to the war and a high risk of torture.
Germany is home to the largest Syrian population outside the Middle East.
About 1.3 million people with Syrian roots live in Germany, the vast majority of whom arrived in 2015 and 2016 when then-Chancellor Angela Merkel welcomed refugees fleeing Syria’s devastating war.
However, in more recent years, Germany’s political climate has turned sharply against immigration.
After a deadly knife attack in Solingen in August, committed by a Syrian national whose asylum case had been rejected, top government figures, including Chancellor Olaf Scholz, called for a deportation ban to Syria to be lifted in the case of criminals
A number of countries also disclosed their decision to freeze asylum proceedings for Syrians.
Austria’s caretaker government announced that asylum proceedings for Syrians would be paused.
The Swedish Migration Agency said that it would pause decisions on Syrian asylum requests and deportations, citing the recent developments in the country.
Carl Bexelius, Lead of legal affairs at the agency, said in a statement cited by a news agency, “Given the situation, it is simply not possible to assess the grounds for protection at this time.”
The statement added that a formal decision is expected tomorrow.
After similar decisions by other European countries including Germany, Sweden and Austria, France also stated that it plans to put asylum requests from Syrians on hold after the toppling of al-Assad.
The Interior Ministry said that the decision “should be taken in the coming hours.”
Pause In Asylum Processing To Leave People In Limbo
Tareq Alaows, spokesman for the refugee advocacy group, Pro Asyl, told a news agency that the decision to stop processing asylum applications will leave people in limbo for months.
He added that it will jeopardise their integration into German society and fuel a sense of fear and uncertainty.
He stressed that the political situation is neither safe nor stable in Syria and action from the international community will be needed to create a path to democracy.
He opined that Spahn is engaging in a “cheap election campaign attempt to win votes on the right-wing fringe of society.”
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