In the wake of the fall of the Assad regime in Syria, Germany and Austria have suspended all asylum applications from the war-torn country until further notice.
Amid the chaos of the storming of Damascus by the al-Qaeda-linked Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) rebel group and the fleeing of former dictator Bashar al-Assad to Moscow, Berlin and Vienna have both announced they will suspend accepting asylum applications from Syrian migrants.
German broadcaster NTV reports that a spokesman for the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) confirmed Monday that all asylum applications from Syrians will be temporarily suspended as the situation in the country is “confusing” and therefore no serious judgements on asylum claims can be made for the time being.
The agency noted that while this decision will not apply to asylum requests made under the EU migrant sharing Dublin regulations, however, it will apply to the vast majority of Syrian nationals. According to the report, there are currently 47,000 asylum applications pending from Syrians, with 46,081 initial applications, which will now be suspended.
Germany was joined Monday by the neo-liberal government in neighbouring Austria in suspending asylum applications from Syrians, impacting initially around 7,300 Syrian asylum applications. Interior Minister Gerhard Karner also announced that the country’s family reunification scheme for Syrian migrants has also been suspended until further notice.
The move by Austria and Germany comes amid growing warnings that the Islamist coup of the Assad regime in Syria could spark another European Migrant Crisis. Even prior to the fall of Assad over the weekend, the United Nations warned that food shortages, in large part caused by the country’s civil war, could result in as many as 1.5 million Syrians fleeing their homes this year