President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan instructed his ministers to address all the needs of Syrian refugees on their way back to their homeland, now liberated from the oppressive Assad regime. Sabah newspaper reported that the president discussed developments in Syria with high-ranking officials and ordered addressing demands and requests of Syrians. The newspaper reported that the new administration of Syria also contacted Ankara for support "in every field" in post-Assad Syria, which is in dire need of recovery and rebuilding after years of war.
Türkiye plans to set up a joint committee of Syrian and Turkish ministers for better cooperation, while sources from Erdoğan’s Justice and Development Party (AK Party) told Sabah that Türkiye would provide logistics support to Syria.
On Sunday, the Trade Ministry unveiled new steps to facilitate the return of refugees to Syria. Trade Minister Ömer Bolat was quoted by Anadolu Agency (AA) saying that they were pursuing efforts for safe, swift and efficient returns to Syria and coordinating with other ministries. The ministry instructed customs offices on the border to cut down red tape for Syrian nationals transporting their possessions to the other side of the border. An additional form required for them was scrapped. The ministry also reduced paperwork for Syrian refugees who arrived in Türkiye with their own Syria-registered license plates and are now leaving in their own vehicles. The same process will apply to vehicles Syrians bought in Türkiye. The ministry also sped up the process for the transfer of businesses Syrians set up in Türkiye.
Syrian citizens are also exempted from a declaration form for the purchase of jewelry they bought in Türkiye or brought with them from their country of origin. Additionally, they won’t be required to present extra documents for the declaration of Turkish and foreign currency they had.
Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said on Saturday that more than 124,000 Syrian refugees returned home from Türkiye from Jan. 1, 2024, to Dec. 9, 2024, and an average of 11,000 people returned monthly. "The number of Syrians returning to their country after it was liberated is increasing," Yerlikaya told an event in the central province of Konya.
Among returnees are those who fled Tal Rifaat in Aleppo, a town occupied by the terrorist group PKK/YPG during Syria’s civil war. Tal Rifaat was liberated by the Syrian National Army (SNA) around the same time anti-regime forces, which now rule Syria, started an advance toward central Aleppo. The PKK/YPG displaced thousands from Tal Rifaat when it occupied the town in 2016 while the rest of the local population was subject to killings and attacks. Some took shelter in Türkiye and in recent days, rushed to Öncüpınar border crossing in Türkiye’s southern province Kilis for returns.
Thirty-year-old Muhammad Said Ahmed is among them. When Ahmed arrived in Türkiye, Tal Rifaat was not occupied by terrorists. When terrorists captured the town, Ahmed’s prospects of returning home any time soon dimmed. "I lost my uncles and many relatives in the civil war. We are now liberated both from Assad and PKK/YPG," he told Anadolu Agency (AA) on Friday.
"A new state will be founded in Syria and I believe it will be better than the old one," he said. Abdulbasik Chobak, another refugee, said many of his relatives already returned to Syria. "Syria is safe now. Assad is gone and (Tal Rifaat) was saved from the PKK," he said.
Ahmed Shubek said the PKK/YPG killed his relatives and forced others to leave. "I am now returning to my country. I am grateful to Türkiye. My parents are in Tal Rifaat and I will reunite with them," he explained.
Within Syria, Türkiye also seeks to take the first steps to aid recovery. To that extent, The Turkish Red Crescent on Saturday opened a new delegation office in the Syrian capital Damascus, marking its second foreign mission.
The office was inaugurated at the Syrian Arab Red Crescent (SARC) headquarters during a ceremony attended by Turkish Red Crescent President Fatma Meriç Yılmaz, Syrian Red Crescent President Mohammad Hazem, and Turkish Red Crescent General Director of International Affairs and Migration Services Alper Küçük, alongside other officials. After a ribbon-cutting ceremony and the signing of a protocol, the Turkish delegation office was officially established within the Syrian Red Crescent building. Aid packages were distributed to those in need following the event.
Yılmaz and Hazem later traveled to the Barzeh district in Damascus to deliver aid to vulnerable residents. Yılmaz presented a commemorative plaque to Hazem, congratulating him on his recent appointment as president of the Syrian Red Crescent. She expressed her satisfaction with their ongoing collaboration, noting their prior work on humanitarian efforts in Idlib.
This delegation office will help them better assess needs and coordinate services in the region, Yılmaz pointed out. "Every country's Red Crescent, by working with others within its own country, gains significant strength in the field of humanitarian aid." She emphasized the importance of the partnership, adding: "As the leaders of two Red Crescents, we've pledged to cooperate in accelerating recovery efforts and advancing humanitarian assistance." Several Turkish charities are also working to deliver aid to Syrians in need in a war-weary country where infrastructure is largely devastated and economic woes aggravated.