Almost 40,000 Syrians Return to Their Homeland from Turkey Following the Fall of Assad's Regime
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Istanbul, Jan 5 (NationPress) Almost 40,000 Syrians have made their way back to their homeland from Turkey since the collapse of Bashar al-Assad's administration on December 8, 2024, as revealed by Turkish Trade Minister Omer Bolat.
During a press briefing at the Cilvegozu Border Gate in the southeastern Hatay province on Saturday, Bolat shared these insights while inspecting a buffer zone, according to a report by Xinhua news agency.
Bolat detailed that a total of 27,941 Syrians had crossed back into their country via the three border gates in Hatay since December 9 of last year.
He stated, “When considering those recorded at other customs gates, the total number of Syrian returns has reached nearly 40,000.”
Furthermore, Bolat noted that many Syrian refugees residing in Turkey are eager to evaluate the conditions in their home regions before deciding to return. To facilitate this, the Turkish Interior Ministry has launched a new initiative that allows Syrian individuals to visit their regions temporarily up to three times within a six-month period.
Bolat expressed optimism that this would expedite the return process for the refugees.
Turkey shares a 900-km border with Syria and currently hosts millions of Syrian refugees.
In a related development, Syria's new administration has taken full control of several border crossings in northern Aleppo province as of Saturday, following discussions between its General Authority for Land and Sea Ports and a Turkish delegation, according to the state-run SANA news agency.
The discussions centered on the transfer of four significant crossings -- Jarabulus, al-Rai, Bab al-Salama, and al-Hammam -- to the new administration, as reported by Mazen Aloush, director of relations for the General Authority.
“As of this morning, these crossings are completely managed by the new Syrian government,” Aloush stated.
Previously, these crossings were primarily under the control of Turkey-backed Syrian opposition groups during the Syrian civil war.
This development comes as Syria undergoes a sensitive political transition following the overthrow of the previous government on December 8, 2024.
