Turkey CHP leader reiterates pledge he'll deport Syrian refugees if elected president

Turkish opposition presidential candidate Kemal Kilicdaroglu has reiterated a pledge to deport Syrian refugees within two years if elected president in May.

Speaking at an election rally in the northwestern city of Eskisehir, the Republican People's Party (CHP) leader echoed earlier linking of Syrians to Turkey's economic troubles.

"What are three million Syrians doing in our country? Our children cannot find jobs!" Kilicdaroglu was quoted by Arabi 21 as saying.

In remarks from the same event quoted by Turkish-language news website TurkTime, Kilicdaroglu said he would reopen mutual embassies with the Syrian regime to facilitate his plans.

Turkey currently hosts approximately 3.5 million Syrian refugees who have increasingly been subjected to racism and xenophobia, with politicians from various parties scapegoating them for the country's economic woes.

In the run-up to Turkey's 14 May elections, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has also increasingly discussed returning refugees to Syria.

Forcible return of refugees to their country of origin - known as refoulement - is illegal under international law.

Syrians have expressed fear that they could be tortured by Assad regime security forces upon returning to the country. The regime has been accused of countless acts of torture, abuse, and detention of its citizens throughout the course of the country's 12-year conflict.

In September, the United Nations Commission of Inquiry on Syria said the country was still not safe, with systemic human rights violations still taking place.