Merz Wants Syrians Residing in Germany to Return Home
Merz made the remarks during a joint press conference with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, who came to power after his Islamist forces ousted longtime ruler Bashar Assad in December 2024. The German chancellor argued that the dramatic change in Damascus had fundamentally altered the calculus for refugee protection.
"Conditions in Syria have now fundamentally improved," Merz said, adding that the protection status of refugees "must therefore be reassessed."
"We therefore need a reliable return option… especially and first and foremost for those who abuse our hospitality," the chancellor said, suggesting that skilled Syrians would "bring valuable experience to the reconstruction of their homeland."
When pressed for specifics, Merz was unambiguous: "over the next three years… around 80% of the Syrians currently residing in Germany should return to their home country."
The figure is striking given the scale of the Syrian diaspora in Germany. Close to one million Syrians now live in the country — a legacy of the mass migration wave that swept across the European Union between 2014 and 2015, when former Chancellor Angela Merkel's open-door policies made Germany one of the top destinations for those fleeing the war.
According to media, al-Sharaa signaled a more measured approach, saying his government was working with Berlin on a "circular migration model" that would "enable Syrians to contribute to the reconstruction of their homeland without giving up the stability and lives they have built here, for those who wish to stay."
However, al-Sharaa's assurances of inclusivity sit uneasily alongside a record of renewed sectarian bloodshed under his rule, including reported massacres targeting Christians, Alawites, and Kurds since he assumed power.
The political backdrop in Germany has also played a significant role in hardening the country's stance. Authorities have progressively tightened asylum regulations in recent years following a series of terrorist attacks and sustained pressure from the anti-immigration Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, which now holds the position of second-largest force in the Bundestag.
Syria's conflict, which erupted from anti-government protests in 2011, spiraled into a complex, multi-front war. The jihadist organization Islamic State (IS), formerly known as ISIS, seized vast swaths of eastern Syria between 2014 and 2017 before being driven out.
Al-Sharaa's own organization, Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), carries a deeply controversial lineage. It originated in 2012 as Jabhat al-Nusra, a Syrian branch of Al-Qaeda, before publicly severing those ties in 2016–2017 and merging with several smaller Islamist factions to form HTS — the group that ultimately seized control of the country.
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