Syrian refugees stuck in limbo: How can they create a social weight in Europe?
Edited by Enab Baladi
Enab Baladi – Saleh Malas
Syrian refugees, who fled their homes during the decade-long war and sought asylum in Europe, are gravely concerned about some European countries’ forcible return policies. Syrian refugees pointed out that they do not feel safe enough to return to their war-torn country, including to regime-held areas, especially if al-Assad remains in power. This is because they fear that they will be arbitrarily arrested, detained, tortured, or even executed by al-Assad’s security forces in retaliation for merely fleeing the country.
Enab Baladi
Enab Baladi – Saleh Malas
After the Syrian opposition forces took control of the city of Raqqa in northeastern Syria in March 2013, Khaled. H., the chief of Branch 355 of the Syrian General Intelligence Directorate (GID), left Raqqa and headed to Turkey on foot.
In April of the same year, Khaled. H, who worked in the GID from 2009 to 2013, went to Jordan. There, he asked the French embassy to grant him a visa, with which he was able to travel to France by plane.
Khaled H. stayed in France for a year. After undergoing preliminary interrogation, the French asylum authorities suspected that he committed human rights violations while working in Syria.