FAMAGUSTA GAZETTE – Approximately 850,000 Syrian refugees have returned to their home country since the fall of President Bashar al-Assad’s regime in December, the United Nations said this week.
Most of the returnees came from neighboring countries, according to the UN refugee agency (UNHCR), which estimates the figure could surpass 1 million in the coming weeks.
UNHCR Deputy High Commissioner Kelly T. Clements also reported that around 1.7 million internally displaced Syrians have returned to their hometowns since the interim government assumed power following Assad’s ouster.
The Syrian civil war, which began in 2011, claimed more than 500,000 lives and displaced half of the country’s 23 million residents.
While the majority fled within Syria, over 5 million sought refuge abroad—primarily in neighboring states.