Germany pauses asylum claims from Syrians

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Germany has paused the processing of asylum claims from Syrians as the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s government has sparked a rethink in France and other EU countries on their immigration policies.

Germany’s interior ministry said on Monday that more than 47,000 asylum claims had been put on hold while Berlin awaited more clarity on the situation in Syria. For the time being, Syrian applications would be pushed down the pile and “other asylum decisions would be prioritised”, it said.

Austria, Finland and Greece also halted the processing of claims from Syrian nationals, while France — which has 450 pending applications — said it was reviewing its policy, with a decision expected later on Monday.

Germany, where migration is shaping up as a campaign topic ahead of snap elections in February, became the largest host of Syrian refugees in the EU after the decision in 2015 of then-chancellor Angela Merkel to welcome them. The country currently hosts close to 1mn people who fled the civil war, which started in 2011.

Less than 48 hours after Assad was toppled, there were already mounting calls from the centre-right Christian Democrats (CDU) and the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) for Syrians in Germany to be encouraged to return home. Polls suggest that the CDU is likely to lead the next government after the February vote.

CDU parliamentary deputy chair Jens Spahn suggested that Berlin could charter flights and offer a €1,000 incentive for people as a “first step”.

Speaking to the broadcaster NTV, he also said that some of the world’s biggest hosts of Syrian refugees should start making preparations for a “reconstruction and return conference” to be held some time in the spring.

AfD leader Alice Weidel said that “the reason for many people from Syria to flee no longer applies” — especially with those who said they had been persecuted by the former government. “These people must return to their homeland as soon as possible,” she said.

But Social Democrats and Greens, who are partners in the outgoing minority government of Chancellor Olaf Scholz, warned that it was much too early to declare Syria as a safe country. Security and minority rights remain a concern after a lightning rebel offensive led by al-Qaeda offshoot Hayat Tahrir al-Sham swept into Damascus over the weekend.

“After a day and a half, I find this an inappropriate domestic political debate,” said Katrin Göring-Eckardt, a senior Green MP.

Interior minister Nancy Faeser, a Social Democrat, said that “concrete possibilities for return” were off the table as long as the situation in Syria was “very confusing”, adding: “It would be irresponsible to speculate about this in such a volatile situation.”

Similar calls for a change of policy towards Syrians have been made from other parts of the EU, where people from Syria make up the majority of applicants for asylum in the bloc.

EU home affairs ministers are due to discuss the situation in Syria on Thursday, though an EU diplomat said no decisions would be taken yet.

Officials in Greece, Finland and Austria on Monday also said they had suspended Syrian asylum claims. A Greek official told the Financial Times that almost 10,000 applications had been put on ice until further notice. Greece has been the main gateway into the EU for refugees from Syria, who have been coming into the bloc via Turkey.

Austrian interior minister Gerhard Karner said on Monday that he had already “instructed the ministry to prepare an orderly repatriation and deportation programme to Syria” after freezing about 13,000 asylum claims and ordering a review of those already granted.

The European Commission cautioned against jumping to conclusions.

“We are convinced that most Syrians in the diaspora have been dreaming of going back to their country over the past decade. Now the current situation is one of great hope but also of great uncertainty,” said EU spokesperson Anouar El Anouni.

“At this stage, it is better not to engage in any too proactive or premature forward look.”

Additional reporting by Eleni Varvitsioti in Athens and Leila Abboud in Paris