German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Nov. 3 said that the civil war in Syria is now over and refugees can start to return home, whether that be voluntarily or through deportations.
Merz told reporters during a visit to Husum in Schleswig-Holstein: “There are now no longer any grounds for asylum in Germany, and therefore we can also begin with repatriations.
“Without these people, rebuilding will not be possible. Those in Germany who then refuse to return to the country can, of course, also be deported in the near future.”
Merz later posted on X: “The civil war in Syria is over. The country now needs all its strength, especially it needs the Syrian women and men for reconstruction. Many want to return—we will promote that and support the reconstruction there.”
Under former Chancellor Angela Merkel—of the same conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party as Merz—Germany admitted hundreds of thousands of Syrian refugees following the start of the European migrant crisis of 2015.
According to December 2024 figures from Destatis, the German Federal Statistical Office, 712,000 Syrians were registered as asylum seekers at the end of 2023. Syrians represent 22 percent of the total 3.17 million asylum seekers in Germany, second only to Ukrainians (31 percent).
Destatis said that in total, nearly 1.3 million people with a Syrian immigration background live in Germany, 18 percent of whom were born in the country.
Merz’s remarks suggesting that his government will take a firmer line on asylum come as the right-wing, anti-illegal immigration Alternative for Germany (AfD) party sees rising support.
According to Politico’s Poll of Polls, as of Oct. 30, the AfD was leading in popularity with 26 percent, narrowly ahead of the CDU at 25 percent, with the CDU’s coalition partner, the progressive Social Democrats, at 14 percent.
Immigration was a topic of concern ahead of February’s federal elections, with polling suggesting that 80 percent of Germans believe that immigration levels have been too high over the past decade.
European Countries Halt Syrian Asylum Claims
Following the ousting of then-Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad in December 2024, several European countries, including Germany, the UK, and France, suspended decisions on Syrian asylum claims.
In September, the United Nations said that even though 1 million Syrians had returned home since the fall of the Assad regime, that represents less than one-quarter of the 4.7 million Syrian refugees living in neighboring countries such as Turkey and Lebanon.
The U.N. said on Sept. 24 that most refugees cited in a UNHCR report did not intend to return to Syria in the next year due to limited jobs, inadequate housing, and concerns about safety and security in the region.
On Sept. 18, Tom Fletcher, the U.N.’s undersecretary-general for humanitarian affairs, said in a statement that “despite the profound changes under way in Syria, it remains one of the largest humanitarian emergencies globally, with more than 70 per cent of the population requiring aid.”
According to the U.N., around 9 million people in the country are acutely food insecure, and approximately 7 million are still internally displaced.
Deporting Criminal Syrians
Merz also said on Nov. 3 that he had invited Syrian leader Ahmed al-Sharaa to Germany to discuss deporting Syrian nationals with criminal records back home.
“We will, of course, continue to deport criminals to Syria. That is the plan. We will now implement this in a very concrete manner,” Merz said.
The German chancellor said that his government would help to stabilize war-torn Syria, saying he would discuss with al-Sharaa “how we can solve this together.”
In December 2024, the Assad regime collapsed, following more than a decade of civil war that was triggered by the 2011 Arab Spring, a series of pro-democracy protests and uprisings. Rebels led by the Islamist militant group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham had taken over Syria’s capital city of Damascus, marking an end to 54 years of rule by the Assad family.
Owen Evans and Reuters contributed to this report.
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