Turkey facilitates repatriation of Syrian refugees

By Muhammed Boztepe and Sertac Bulur

ANKARA

Deputy Director General of Migration Management Abdullah Ayaz on Thursday said 75,000 Syrians in Turkey have been repatriated following Operation Euphrates Shield.

Last year, Turkey launched Operation Euphrates Shield, a military campaign aimed at clearing Daesh terrorists from the Turkish-Syrian border region.  

"75,000 Syrians in Turkey have returned after the operation. Of them 55,000 went to Jarabulus and 20,000 went to Azaz, Ar-rai and Al-Bab," he said.

He said Turkey was facilitating their return, adding that more refugees will willingly return to their home country in the near future.

"We have seen the willingness of Syrians to return to their country if security is established within Syria," he said.

Syria has only just begun to emerge from a devastating civil war that began in 2011. Since then, hundreds of thousands of people have been killed in the conflict and millions more displaced, according to the UN.

Turkey currently hosts 3.2 million Syrian refugees, more than any other country in the world.

Ayaz dismissed the perception that Syrians are engaged in crime in Turkey.

"According to figures from the General Directorate of Security, they are involved in only 1.5 percent of crimes committed nationwide," he said.

He added that research proves that refugees never cause a negative effect on the economy of the host country.

"Syrians generally work and contribute to the economy," he said.

He added nearly one million Syrian children of school-going age are living in Turkey.

"We are in close contact with the Ministry of National Education regarding their education. We care about their education. We don't want the emergence of a lost generation. Whether they live here or return, they must obtain an education."