Germany invites Syria’s al-Sharaa to discuss deportation of Syrians
DAMASCUS, Syria (North Press) – German Chancellor Friedrich Merz announced on Monday that he invited Syrian Transitional President, Ahmad al-Sharaa, to visit Germany to discuss the deportation of Syrian citizens with criminal records.
Merz said that the civil war in Syria “is over” and that there are “no longer any grounds for asylum” in Germany.
“We will, of course, continue to deport criminals to Syria,” Merz told reporters. “That is the plan. We will now implement this in a very concrete manner.”
He added that Berlin aims to support efforts to stabilize Syria and intends to discuss the issue directly with Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa.
The Chancellor noted that he plans to discuss with al-Sharaa “how we can solve this together,” emphasizing that Germany considers the Syrian civil war to be over and that “There are now no longer any grounds for asylum in Germany,” Merz said.
Germany hosts more than 700,000 Syrians, the largest refugee population in Europe. Berlin suspended deportations to Syria in 2012 due to the ongoing conflict and human rights violations by the Assad government.
While European courts have ruled against returns citing safety concerns, several EU states have recently pushed for re-evaluating the asylum status of Syrians.
Merz’s comments come amid broader European discussions on normalizing ties with Damascus and amid domestic political pressure to tighten migration policies.