ISTANBUL, Turkey (North Press) – A large number of the Syrian refugees in Turkey, especially in Istanbul, live in a state of concern and anxiety for fear of being deported either to another city or to the Idlib region and its surroundings.
These concerns came after the recent announcement by the governor of Istanbul, Ali Yerli Kaya, about a large-scale campaign of the houses of the Syrians to check their identity papers, especially the temporary protection card “Kimlik”.
The check will also include whether the card was issued by the competent authorities in the city in which they live or not, and also whether these documents match their residential addresses or not.
The announcement of the Istanbul governor came during his meeting with Turkish security officials few days ago.
“The campaign will deport the holder of the violating card from Istanbul to the city from which that card was issued,” Ali al-Rajab, a human rights activist, said.
A large percentage of Syrian refugees carry documents contrary to their place of residence, which makes them vulnerable to deportation from Istanbul, according to al-Rajab.
A number of Syrian refugees expressed their fear of the imminent implementation of this decision and the start of the check campaign by the Turkish authorities.
“I live with a group of young Syrians in one house, and we are 8, where only one of us holds the Kamlik card issued by Istanbul,” Omran al-Mousa, a Syrian refugee from the countryside of Hama, told North Press.
“We fear that this campaign will affect our livelihoods, especially since all the cities from which we came, have no job opportunities,” al-Mousa added.
As for Mustafa Abu Saeed, who comes from the countryside of Damascus, told North Press, “we hope that the coronavirus will not end, as it had a great role in turning a blind eye to the Syrians, especially those who hold violating documents.”
For his part, Mus’ab Youssef, a Syrian refugee from the city of Raqqa, said, “For several months, I have been trying to transfer the Kimlik from the city I used to live in, which is Adana.”
“However, all the attempts failed because the government agencies in Istanbul set difficult and impossible conditions for transferring property from one city to another,” Youssef added.
About 4 million Syrians live in Turkey, according to Turkish official statistics.
About 92,280 people obtained Turkish citizenship after one or two years of the four stages of naturalization, according to statements of the Immigration and Passports Department and the Turkish Ministry of Interior, while the Turkish government allowed those of any nationality who buy any property worth $250,000 to obtain Turkish citizenship within 30 days.
The problem of documents and obtaining them, especially in Istanbul, is one of the most prominent problems and difficulties facing the Syrians there.
The deportation of the Syrians from Turkey and their detention for various reasons are still arousing the Syrians’ resentment and concerns about the laws that may be a new trap to inflict more Syrians to deport them randomly and forcibly, and to send them back to their country.