Hundreds of thousands of Syrian refugees have returned to the country following the fall of the Assad regime in December [Photo by Murat Kocabas/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images]
Nearly 200,000 Syrian refugees have returned home since the fall of Bashar al-Assad in early December, the UN refugee chief Filippo Grandi said Saturday ahead of a visit to the region.
Between December 8 and January 16, some 195,200 Syrians returned home, according to figures published by Grandi on X.
“Soon I will visit Syria – and its neighbouring countries – as UNHCR steps up its support to returnees and receiving communities,” Grandi said.
Hundreds of thousands of Syrians had returned home last year as they fled Lebanon to escape Israeli attacks during its conflict with the Hezbollah militant group.
Those returns came before a lightning rebel offensive led by Islamist rebel group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham late last year ousted Assad, raising hopes of an end to a 13-year civil war that killed over half million dead and sent millions seeking refuge abroad.
Turkey, which shares a 900-kilometre (560-mile) border with Syria, hosts some 2.9 million Syrians who have fled since 2011.
Turkish authorities, who are hoping to see many of those refugees return to ease growing anti-Syrian sentiment among the population, are allowing one member of each refugee family to make three round trips until 1 July 2025 to prepare for their resettlement.
However, many Syrians who work on refugee issues have cautioned against a major influx of refugees returns that could exacerbate the fragile situation in the country.
Syria is riddled with damaged and destroyed infrastructure following over a decade of war, and international sanctions on the country are still in place, although some have been waived.
Likewise, Syria’s political transition is still ongoing, with actors within the country and international community calling for an inclusive political framework to be adopted by the current transitional government.
