Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced on Monday that Türkiye will reopen a border gate with Syria in southern Hatay province to facilitate the voluntary and secure return of Syrian refugees.
“We are opening the Yayladagi crossing to prevent overcrowding and facilitate traffic during the return (of Syrian refugees),” Erdogan said at a press conference after a cabinet meeting in the capital Ankara.
The Yayladagi crossing close to the northwest tip of Syria has been closed since 2013 due to fighting near the border.
While highlighting significant changes in Syria’s socio-political landscape, Erdogan expressed optimism about the region’s future. “As of yesterday, a dark period in Syria has ended, and a brighter era has begun,” he said.
“The strong winds of change sweeping Syria will lead to positive outcomes for all Syrians, especially refugees. As stability is restored to Syria, voluntary, safe, dignified, and orderly returns (of Syrian refugees) will increase,” he added.
Erdogan also stressed Türkiye’s stance on respecting the territorial integrity of other states. “Türkiye has no interest in occupying another country’s land. Our cross-border operations aim solely to protect our nation and citizens from terrorist threats.”
Türkiye controls large areas of northern Syria following multiple cross-border operations against the Syrian Kurdish People’s Protection Units, which Ankara views as a branch of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).
In addition, hundreds of Syrian refugees gathered at two border crossings in southern Türkiye — the Cilvegozu border gate in Hatay and the Oncupinar border post in Kilis province — to return to their homeland following the fall of President Bashar al-Assad’s government on Sunday.
According to a UN report updated on Nov. 30, approximately 3.7 million Syrian refugees live in Türkiye, making the country the largest host of Syrians who have fled the civil war. ■