Several European countries on Monday suspended decisions on Syrian asylum requests and deportations after the fall of President Bashar al-Assad.
Advertisement
The decision, which affects tens of thousands of open claims in Germany, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Britain, Italy, Greece, the Netherlands and Austria, reflects the rapidly changing political situation in Syria as well as a resurgence of right-wing parties across Europe keen to restrict immigration.
Germany opened its doors wide to a surge of asylum seekers in 2015 at the height of Syria’s civil war, and is now home to nearly a million Syrians, the largest community in Europe.
The Berlin Interior Ministry said on Monday it would not process asylum requests until there was more clarity on political developments in Syria. Britain paused decisions on asylum claims as well, with the interior ministry saying it was assessing the situation.
Under a British government scheme, 20,319 Syrian refugees had been resettled in the country between March 2014 and February 2021, according to the Refugee Council.
Advertisement
Other countries including Norway, Italy, Austria and the Netherlands also announced suspensions of Syrian requests. France said it hoped to announce a similar decision soon.
