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France suspends 700 Syrian asylum applications

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot announced on Sunday that around 700 asylum applications submitted by Syrians have been suspended in France.

This move comes in the context of the strong advances made by far-right parties in the recent elections.

Jean-Noël Barrot told RTL: "Today, there are 700 Syrian asylum applications being examined by the French Office for the Protection of Refugees and Stateless Persons, which have been suspended pending further information." This means that it is time to see how the political transition in Damascus develops.

Some 45,000 Syrians benefit from political refugee status on French territory. The government is studying the possibility of returning refugees to Syria, without losing their status.

According to the European Union Asylum Agency (EUAA), more than 100,000 applications for international protection from Syrians in exile in the EU are being processed in the 27 member states.

*Other countries follow France's lead

In the context of the strong advances made by far-right parties in the recent elections, about ten European countries have decided, since the fall of Bashar al-Assad in Damascus in early December, to suspend asylum applications.

The French foreign minister also pointed out that some refugees could return to Syria without immediately losing their status, which is not allowed by law in principle.

*Exemptions are possible

Jean-Noël Barrot said that the French government is studying this situation. "Exemptions are possible in certain circumstances... and they have been granted in certain cases."

Some 45,000 Syrians benefit from political refugee status on French soil, including those who fled since the uprising against Assad began in 2011.

The association "Reviver", which has been hosting Syrian refugees in France since 2004, is demanding "a moral and humanitarian commitment from the French authorities, which is to say that Syrian refugees can go to Syria without any problems upon their return to France."

Fares Al-Rifai - Zaman Al-Wasl

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