Syrians in Türkiye hopeful of return as opposition advances in Aleppo, Hama
Since Nov. 30, Syrian rebels have shocked much of the region by capturing Aleppo, Syria’s second-largest and highly symbolic city.
On Wednesday, Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya announced that out of the 3 million Syrian refugees in Türkiye, some 1.3 million of them come from Aleppo. This makes up 42% of Syrian refugees in the country.
Yerlikaya stated, “They (Syrians) are very happy with the developments. Right now, to those who say, ‘I want to go right away,’ we say, ‘Wait a bit, it’s not safe right now. Let’s see what happens.’ It will be announced when the registration is ‘safe.'”
The interior minister’s comments come at a time when videos are circulating across Turkish social media platforms depicting Syrians in Türkiye preparing to make their way back to Syria and as family reunifications take place.
Syrians react to new gains by opposition forces
Photos and videos have since emerged of both celebration and family reunifications taking place.
Students at Istanbul’s Bogazici University set up a stand distributing pastries with a sign that read, “For the liberation of Aleppo and Tel Rifat.” While it appears the stand was organized by Syrian students, this has not been confirmed.
Meanwhile, videos continue to circulate of emotional family reunions taking place. One such video showed two brothers embracing each other in Afrin, Syria, after being separated for seven years.
Charles Lister, director of the Syria program at Washington-based think tank Middle East Institute, shared on X, “As opposition forces advance in northern Syria, families long separated by war and by the terror instilled by the Assad regime’s security state are finally being reunited. These brothers hadn’t seen each other for 7 years, until today in Aleppo.”
In another such reunion, a Syrian family of eight, who spent seven years in Türkiye’s Hatay province, expressed gratitude to Türkiye for their hospitality as they prepared to return to their home in Aleppo. The family member stated her thanks in fluent Turkish.
Migration expert weighs in
Professor Murat Erdogan, a migration expert, told Türkiye Today, “These developments in Syria are unexpected, particularly the situation in Aleppo. This has generated a lot of excitement.”
He emphasized that refugees “have long been reluctant to return to areas under protection and instead wish to go back to the places where they were born.”
However, Erdogan stressed that the conditions are not yet suitable for mass, permanent migration. “There is still uncertainty about the direction the U.S. will take and the roles of Russia and Iran,” he noted.
Erdogan warned of a potential “unfortunate scenario where rising escalations could increase the risk of migration.”
