HRW: Syrian refugees who returned home are risking abuse and persecution
October 21, 2021, 6:45 am

HRW: Syrian refugees who returned home are risking abuse and persecution

Syria-Syrian refugees/Pixabay

The Yahoo news reported according to Reuters, a report from the NGO Human Rights Watch is saying that Syrian refugees who have returned home are risking abuse and persecution, including torture and killings.

The report, released on Wednesday (October 20), documented 65 cases of arrest, arbitrary detention, torture, extrajudicial killing and enforced disappearances between 2017 and 2021 among those returned from Lebanon and Jordan.

Sara Kayyali, Syrian researcher for the rights group said: "I mean it is very clear to us that the reasons that most of these refugees that have fled in the first place have not been resolved at all. In the past decade, we have seen the Syrian government continue to commit the same abuses that they've committed since 2011 with no reform in sight, with no change in sight."

Syria's conflict has killed hundreds of thousands and displaced millions, and the NGO accuses Lebanon, where many refugees have gone, of pursuing quote, "aggressive returns agenda" against refugees.

Minister of Social Affairs Hector Hajjar said Lebanon was committed to the principal of no forceful returns of Syrian refugees.

Meanwhile, Jordan has not publicly pushed for large-scale organized repatriations, but has closed many jobs to foreigners, according to Human Rights Watch.

The authorities say the move is designed to ease unemployment among locals.

Sarah Kayyali said: "The evidence we have clearly shows that Syrian refugees are at risk of persecution and any kind of call for Syrians to return prematurely is only going to result in them facing serious risks and even death. These kinds of calls are not grounded in reality."

In an encampment in northern Lebanon, Syrian refugee Abou Alaa has heard stories about people being taken to prisons when they reach the borders.

He says he would love to go back to his home country, but for now, it is not safe to return.

Source: yahoo

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Upon arriving to participate in the summit of the European Political Community, which includes around forty heads of state in Budapest, he said, "I look forward to sitting with the elected U.S. president and seeing how we will collectively ensure we meet challenges, including the threats from Russia and North Korea." He also noted that the strengthening of ties between Russia and North Korea poses a threat to the United States as well, according to reports from Agence France-Presse.

Before Trump's victory, Rutte expressed confidence that a united Washington would remain part of the defensive alliance, even if Trump became the 47th president of the United States. In an interview with German public broadcaster ZDF last Monday night, he stated that both Republicans and Democrats understand that NATO serves not only the security of Europe but also that of America. He added that both candidates are aware that the security of the United States is closely tied to NATO.

On Wednesday, NATO congratulated Trump on his victory but did not address the Ukrainian issue.

It is noteworthy that the relationship between the elected U.S. president and the defense alliance was not the best during his first term in the White House. Trump criticized NATO member states multiple times and even hinted at withdrawing from the alliance unless they increased their financial contributions.

Additionally, the issue of the Russian-Ukrainian war is one of the matters that complicate relations between the two sides, especially since Trump has repeatedly stated that he can end this ongoing conflict, which began in 2022, quickly. He implied that he had a peace plan between Kyiv and Moscow, while his vice president, JD Vance, revealed aspects of that plan, which stipulated Ukraine's commitment not to join NATO, thereby sending reassuring signals to the Russians.

Furthermore, many NATO member states in Europe fear that Trump might halt military aid to Ukraine after he previously criticized the U.S. for pouring funds into supporting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.