Half a million Syrians return since fall of Assad, as Israeli special forces land near Damascus

Almost half a million Syrians have returned to their country following the ouster of Bashar al-Assad in December, the director of local and international relations at Syria’s land and seaports authority said.

Mazen Alloush said that 485,000 citizens returned to Syria during the first half of the year, particularly as confidence in the stability and security of the country has continued to grow in recent months.

The authority estimates that over 350,000 crossed into Syria in June from neighbouring countries, using mainly the Jdeidet Yabous border crossing with Lebanon.

"The border crossings have seen the return of tens of thousands of expats who have now chosen to permanently settle in Syria and benefit from the facilities available," Alloush told The New Arab’s Arabic language sister publication, Al-Araby Al-Jadeed.

"The General Authority of Syrian Land and Sea Ports are working to receive those returning and help them complete the process smoothly, while providing free transportation within the border crossings and exempting people from any fees regarding luggage or furniture they bring back," Alloush explained.

A Syrian man, with Turkish citizenship, told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed that there have so far been some logistical issues with returning to the country.

"Syrians with Turkish citizenship enter through the Bab al-Hawa border crossing, which is very crowded," the man who requested to remain anonymous said.

"I went to the Hammamet crossing in the morning because there was a lot of crowding at the Cilvegozu crossing, opposite the Bab al-Hawa crossing on the Syrian side. We registered our names on a list with the Turkish security services, but we were not able to cross until the next day. We are awaiting greater facilitation from the Turkish side regarding the movement of Syrians with Turkish citizenship," he continued.

This comes as Austria deported a man to Syria for the first time in 15 years, marking the first time this happened since the fall of the Assad regime.

Austria’s interior minister, Gerhard Karner, commented on the incident, saying: "The deportation carried out today is part of a strict and thus fair asylum policy".

The man, 32, was granted asylum in Austria in 2014 but lost his refugee status in 2019 due to a criminal record.

Since April, he has been waiting for a response on another decision on an asylum claim after receiving a negative one.

Several European countries have in recent months been calling for Syrian refugees who fled from persecution under the Assad regime to return to their country.

Austria previously called for the "orderly repatriation and deportation to Syria," just one day after Bashar al-Assad was ousted from power.

The country, which has become home to around 100,000 Syrians, echoed similar sentiments to Germany, which announced it was working with the new transitional government to deport criminals who had Syrian nationality.

Other countries, including Denmark, further called for migrants who commit "serious crimes" to be expelled from Europe.

Israeli special forces in Syria

Meanwhile in Syria, Israeli special forces have entered the Syrian village of Yaafor west of Damascus, Israeli media reported.

Helicopters allegedly landed at the site, which belonged to the Republican Guard under the Assad regime.

During the operation, Israeli forces also searched the area and went into the village of Rakhlah with armed vehicles.

Lebanese news site Al-Mayadeen said that it was the first incursion of its kind in the area.

The report added that Israeli forces have constructed a new military outpost within Syrian territory, marking the tenth such site since the fall of Assad.