Doors Are Widely Open for All Displaced Syrians to Return Home Safely: Minister

DAMASCUS, (ST)- The return of displaced Syrians to their homeland is a priority for the  Syrian government, Minister of Local Administration and Environment Hussein Makhlouf, who is also Head of the Coordination Committee for the Return of Displaced Syrians, has stressed, pointing out that doors are widely opened for all displaced Syrians to return home safely.

Speaking to foreign media representatives at the ministry’s headquarters on Monday, Makhlouf said the government’s efforts are currently concentrating on helping the Syrian refugees return home and on preparing the ground for this purpose including creating job opportunities and improving living conditions.

 “As most areas in Syria have been liberated from terrorism and have restored security, the state institutions and ministries are sparing no effort to rehabilitate the destroyed areas and restore damaged facilities and services,” the minister said.

“Thanks to these efforts some three million internally displaced people have returned to their houses after the Syrian army had liberated their areas of residence in the countryside of Aleppo, Raqqa, Deir Ezzour, Damascus, Homs and Lattakia,” he added.

Makhlouf affirmed that all the Syrians abroad can return safely. “What is applied to the Syrians inside the country is applied to those abroad. All will be under the homeland umbrella and their dignity will be preserved,” he said, noting the daily return of displaced Syrians from Lebanon through border crossings.

Terrorism forced Syrians to leave their homeland: al-Mikdad

On his part, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates Faisal al-Mikdad, member of the above mentioned Coordination Committee, said that the Syrians who left the homeland during the crisis were forced to leave because of the terrorism that hit their areas.

He added that the unilateral coercive measure imposed on Syria have negatively affected the life of the Syrians, stressing that any kind of assistance provided to Syria must not be subject to any conditions.

Al-Mikdad called on the Syrians abroad to return home, affirming that the Syrian government together with the United Nations will facilitate their voluntary and dignified return by all means.

Another member of the Coordination Committee, Maj. Gen. Hassan Hassan, urged western governments to lift the coercive economic measures they imposed on Syria, because this is the key factor which will allow displaced Syrians to come back to their homeland.

Hundreds of displaced Syrian families have returned from Lebanon across Jdeidet Yabous and al-Zamrani crossings to their  houses in Qalamoun, Zabadani and Beit Jinn areas in Damascus Countryside after rehabilitating the infrastructure which was damaged by the terrorists.

Hamda Mustafa