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More than 6,000 Syrians in Britain are stuck in limbo because of an ongoing freeze on their asylum claims, two months after the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime.
The Home Office announced a “pause” on Syrian asylum seekers’ claims on 9 December, the day after rebels swept into Damascus, saying that it needed to “assess the current situation”.
The situation remains deeply uncertain. Ahmed al-Sharaa, formerly known by his nom de guerre Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, was recently named president, but his forces are still declared a terrorist group by the UK and other countries.
At least 6,600 Syrian asylum applications, each of which can include more than one person, are frozen in the UK system pending an initial decision and more claims are expected from those arriving on small boats, according to analysis by the Observer of official figures. Leading charities and lawyers have called for the government to resolve the situation.
Many of the claims that have been put on hold are thought to be from Syrians who fled Assad’s regime. In the House of Lords last month, the Home Office minister, Lord Hanson, said there was a “strong case” that the majority of Syrians who arrived before the fall of Assad “were fleeing the Assad regime”.
However, several different groups have been accused of persecution and war crimes, and have controlled different territories since the outbreak of civil war in Syria in 2011.
Hassan*, a former colonel in the Syrian Arab Army who defected and believes he remains at risk from people on all sides of the conflict, is among those affected.
Hassan arrived in Britain on a small boat about two years ago and was granted asylum last year before the decision was withdrawn by the Home Office because of a spelling mistake. It was not corrected and reissued before the Assad regime fell and the pause on claims took effect.
“People who arrived months after me have got residency and the right to reunite with their families, but I am still waiting,” Hassan said.
“My wife and children are living in Turkey. I have not seen them for years and they are waiting for me to find them a safe country, a new life and a better future.”
Hassan called the pause on decisions “arbitrary”, saying that al-Sharaa’s rebel faction remained a designated terrorist group and should not be recognised as a “legitimate authority ruling Syria”.
He said that while he knew some Syrians who were planning to return to the country following the regime change, as a former colonel in Assad’s army, he fears being arrested and killed. “Me and my family, we do not have any possibility of returning to Syria,” he added.
“I was never a supporter of the former regime and I lost everything, but I do not accept living in a country ruled by extremists and knowing that my fate will be death.”
Al-Sharaa, who was named president for what state media called a “transitional period” on 29 January, has vowed to pursue people he called “criminals who shed Syrian blood”.
While committing to holding elections and drawing up a new constitution, he has suggested to local media that the process could take years.
A Home Office official, speaking on condition of anonymity, accused the British government of “putting people’s lives on hold for political reasons” amid internal indecision about how to treat Al-Sharaa’s new regime.
“They are basically holding asylum applicants captive until the Foreign Office figures out what the international stance is,” they added. “It’s not needed, as they could grant asylum and then revoke it once they ascertain that the refugee no longer runs the risk of being persecuted in their home country.”
The civil servant said that because those now in limbo cannot legally work, and the government has a legal duty to house and support them until a decision is made, the pause was driving up accommodation costs. It cannot lift the freeze until new guidance is drawn up for asylum applications. But the Home Office website shows all documents related to Syria as “withdrawn”.
Hanson confirmed last month, answering questions in the House of Lords, that asylum interviews had been paused and that a timeline had not been set for resuming processing.
“This was and remains a necessary step which several other European countries have also taken,” Hanson added. “The pause is under constant review. When there is a clear basis on which to make decisions, we will resume.”
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The freeze also applies to Syrians who have already been granted refugee status, but are nearing the end of an initial five-year grant of leave to remain in the UK and must make a new application to stay.
“Everything is paused at the moment for the simple reason that we do not yet understand what has happened in Syria on a permanent basis or know how stable Syria is as a whole,” Hanson said.
“There is an assessment to be made of whether individuals wish to return to Syria or to seek asylum, and for those individuals who may seek asylum, what their status is. It is a very complex, moving situation.”
The Refugee Council is urging the government to find an alternative way of processing claims, such as focusing on claims that are not reliant on persecution by the Assad regime or granting a form of humanitarian protection. Jon Featonby, the charity’s chief policy analyst, said the ongoing “limbo” was distressing for those affected and costly for the system.
“We recognise that the situation has changed quite significantly but many people have already been stuck in the asylum system for a long time, and are now caught up in this uncertainty,” he added. “There doesn’t seem to be any clarity on how long the pause will be for. “We recognise the Home Office needs to take a bit of time to ascertain what’s going on, but it could be some time before they get any clarity. It’s in everybody’s best interest for there to be a way of moving forward quite quickly.”
Featonby said that Syrian refugees with existing rights, but who are approaching deadlines to apply for indefinite leave to remain, face “serious ramifications” because if their legal right to remain expires, they will lose eligibility for housing, employment and study.
“It is understandably starting to cause worry and disrupt their lives, even if they’ve been in the UK for years and started to rebuild their lives,” Featonby added. “It doesn’t seem realistic that the situation in Syria is going to resolve itself any time soon and leaving people in limbo isn’t in anybody’s best interests.”
Steve Smith, the chief executive of the Care4Calais charity, also called for the UK government to lift the pause. “The decision to pause the asylum claims of Syrian refugees is essentially an admission from the government that they cannot guarantee Syria is safe under the new political regime,” he said.
“Those locked in limbo as a result of the pause sought safety in the UK and many have waited years for a decision on their asylum claim. We have a moral obligation to give them a decision so they can start to rebuild their lives.”
Hassan voiced concern that the current fragile peace could give way to fresh conflict between the competing groups who still control different parts of Syria.
“There is the possibility of escalation and civil war at any time, and the presence of many sleeper cells and extremist groups that are still carrying out attacks in different areas,” he said. “The path towards comprehensive security and stability will take a long time, and there need to be exceptions to the suspension of asylum decisions for Syrians.”
A Home Office spokesperson said: “The Home Office has temporarily paused decisions on Syrian asylum claims while we assess the current situation. We are committed to delivering an asylum system that is responsive to all forms of persecution and which facilitates fair and sustainable asylum decisions.”
* The name has been changed to protect anonymity
