Syrian government accused of arresting returnees

Activist-run monitoring groups are accusing the Syrian government of arresting hundreds of refugees and internally displaced Syrians who returned to government-held territory.

The Syrian government has been calling on refugees to return with assurances that conditions are now safe after a string of government victories secured President Bashar Al Assad’s control over more than 60 per cent of the country.

The Russian military on Friday said nearly 270,000 Syrian refugees had returned in recent months – a small portion of the 5.6 million Syrians who are believed to have fled abroad.

Many are returning from neighbouring Lebanon, which has led the repatriation of Syrian refugees. Lebanese security agencies estimate that about 80,000 Syrians have returned since July.

The reopening of the Nassib border crossing between Jordan and Syria in October prompted the Syrian government to reinforce calls for the millions of refugees there to return home.

UN agencies and rights groups, however, say that repatriation may be premature. Many fear refugees will face persecution returning to government-controlled areas in the absence of a comprehensive political agreement.

The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights on Friday said that more than 700 repatriates had been arrested since October, after returning to government-held parts of the country. Of the 700, only 230 are still detained, the monitoring group said.

The Syrian government has been known to detain people on charges of assisting or supporting rebel groups.

Lebanon’s minister of refugee affairs confirmed to The National yesterday that his office had received reports of Syrians being detained after returning to government-held parts of Syria from Lebanon, but said that he could not detail how many.

The Syrian Network for Human Rights, a separate activist-run monitoring group, corroborated reports by the Observatory.

Earlier in October, Mr Al Assad signed a decree granting amnesty to certain categories of returnees, on condition they report to authorities within four to six months.

This month, the Syrian military issued a new circular discharging individuals called up for reservist military service and dropping penalties against those who dodged extra military duty.