Germany After 15 years: Austria deports to Syria again
Austria has deported a Syrian to his home country for the first time in around 15 years. Interior Minister Gerhard Karner laid the foundations for this during a joint trip to Syria with his then German colleague Nancy Faeser in April.
03.07.2025, 17:09
SDA
This was reported by the Ministry of the Interior in Vienna.
A Syrian criminal was brought to Damascus on Thursday on a scheduled flight from Vienna with a stopover in Istanbul, the Austrian ministry added. Karner described this repatriation as a "strong signal". "We will continue along this path with hard work and vigor," the conservative minister announced.
Austria had not deported any people to Syria during the civil war there. After the fall of Syrian ruler Bashar al-Assad last December, the Ministry of the Interior in Vienna prepared a return and deportation program. Since then, more than 350 people have voluntarily returned to Syria, it said.
German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt (CSU) has described returns to Syria as a currently unresolved problem. "There are contacts with Syria regarding an agreement to return Syrian criminals. The results are not yet available," he told Focus magazine in an interview published on Thursday.
