When Germany opened its doors to refugees escaping war in the Middle East, more people arrived from Syria than any other country – finding homes, getting jobs, starting families.
A question mark now hangs over their future, after Germany’s government – which has hardened its stance on immigration amid a surging far right – suggested it could be time for some to return home, voluntarily or not.
Some 1 million Syrians arrived in Germany at the height of the refugee crisis in 2015-2016, under former chancellor Angela Merkel. Approximately 1.3 million live in Germany currently, including 25,000 who were born there.
Now, Chancellor Friedrich Merz and other conservatives in his coalition cabinet are calling for their repatriation.
Merz this week said that Berlin would approach the issue in a “very concrete matter,” as he signaled that there are “no longer any grounds for asylum in Germany, and therefore we can also begin with repatriations.”
While the German government will first and foremost encourage voluntary repatriation, Merz said those who refuse “can, of course, also be deported in the near future,” as he said that the return of Syrians to their homeland would be k
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