Ankara Plans Accelerating Syrian Refugee Return Through ‘Aleppo Development’

Spraying of the Zardana camp in northwestern Syria with water amid a significant rise in temperatures on Monday (AFP)
Spraying of the Zardana camp in northwestern Syria with water amid a significant rise in temperatures on Monday (AFP)
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Ankara Plans Accelerating Syrian Refugee Return Through ‘Aleppo Development’

Spraying of the Zardana camp in northwestern Syria with water amid a significant rise in temperatures on Monday (AFP)
Spraying of the Zardana camp in northwestern Syria with water amid a significant rise in temperatures on Monday (AFP)

Turkish media reports revealed that the government, under the instructions of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has established a tripartite mechanism aimed at accelerating voluntary repatriation efforts for Syrian refugees, with a focus on economic and social development in the Aleppo province in northwestern Syria.

The “Sabah” newspaper, closely aligned with the Turkish government, has stated that Erdogan issued directives to establish a tripartite mechanism consisting of representatives from the Ministry of Interior, the ruling Justice and Development Party, and its parliamentary bloc.

This mechanism aims to encourage Syrians to voluntarily return to areas being cleared by forces and factions loyal to Ankara.

The tripartite mechanism will concentrate its efforts on “revitalizing economic and commercial life in the areas cleared in northern Syria” and promoting entrepreneurs, including Turks, to establish projects, factories, and facilities there to provide employment opportunities for returnees.

Sabah highlighted a significant aspect of the roadmap being pursued by the mechanism, which is the emphasis on Aleppo province, known as Syria’s economic capital, with the goal of reviving it both economically and socially.

In pursuit of this, Türkiye continues negotiations with both the Russian and Syrian sides to include Aleppo in the roadmap, a move aimed at creating employment opportunities for hundreds of thousands of Syrian refugees who will be encouraged to return to their homeland.

Last week, a writer for “Hürriyet Daily News” revealed two prominent issues concerning Syria that will be the focus of discussions between Erdogan and Russian President Vladimir Putin during the latter’s potential visit to Türkiye in August.

The first issue is the return of refugees, and the second is the normalization between Ankara and Damascus, including a potential meeting between Erdogan and his Syrian counterpart Bashar al-Assad.

The writer further emphasized the importance of the Erdogan-Assad meeting, as Türkiye’s priority lies in ensuring the safe return of Syrians to their homeland. They noted that a significant portion of Syrians in Türkiye are from the Aleppo province, and it is essential to guarantee their safe return to their original areas.

Ankara’s vision in this regard involves establishing security points in coordination between the Turkish and Syrian armies.



Rights Defenders Denounce US Sanctions on UN Expert on Palestinians

UN Special Rapporteur for the occupied Palestinian territories, Francesca Albanese gives a press conference at the UN City in Copenhagen, Denmark February 5, 2025. Ritzau Scanpix/Ida Marie Odgaard via REUTERS/File Photo
UN Special Rapporteur for the occupied Palestinian territories, Francesca Albanese gives a press conference at the UN City in Copenhagen, Denmark February 5, 2025. Ritzau Scanpix/Ida Marie Odgaard via REUTERS/File Photo
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Rights Defenders Denounce US Sanctions on UN Expert on Palestinians

UN Special Rapporteur for the occupied Palestinian territories, Francesca Albanese gives a press conference at the UN City in Copenhagen, Denmark February 5, 2025. Ritzau Scanpix/Ida Marie Odgaard via REUTERS/File Photo
UN Special Rapporteur for the occupied Palestinian territories, Francesca Albanese gives a press conference at the UN City in Copenhagen, Denmark February 5, 2025. Ritzau Scanpix/Ida Marie Odgaard via REUTERS/File Photo

Human rights defenders rallied on Thursday to support the top UN expert on Palestinian rights, after the United States imposed sanctions on her over what it said was unfair criticism of Israel.

Italian lawyer Francesca Albanese serves as special rapporteur on human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories, one of dozens of experts appointed by the 47-member UN Human Rights Council to report on specific global issues.

She has long criticized Israeli treatment of the Palestinians, and this month published a report accusing over 60 companies, including some US firms, of supporting Israeli settlements in the West Bank and military actions in Gaza.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced on Wednesday Albanese would be added to the US sanctions list for work which had prompted what he described as illegitimate prosecutions of Israelis at the International Criminal Court.

United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk urged Washington to reverse course.

"Even in the face of fierce disagreement, UN Member States should engage substantively and constructively, rather than resort to punitive measures," he said, Reuters reported.

Juerg Lauber, the Swiss permanent representative to the UN who now holds the rotating presidency of the Human Rights Council, said he regretted the sanctions, and called on states to "refrain from any acts of intimidation or reprisal" against the body's experts.

Mariana Katzarova, who serves as the special rapporteur for human rights in Russia, said her concern was that other countries would follow the US lead.

"This is totally unacceptable and opens the gates for any other government to do the same," she told Reuters. "It is an attack on UN system as a whole. Member states must stand up and denounce this."

Russia has rejected Katzarova's mandate and refused to let her enter the country, but it has so far stopped short of publicly adding her to a sanctions list.

Washington has already imposed sanctions against officials at the International Criminal Court, which has issued arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former defense minister for suspected war crimes in Gaza. Another court, the International Court of Justice, is hearing a case brought by South Africa that accuses Israel of genocide.

Israel denies that its forces have carried out war crimes or genocide against Palestinians in the war in Gaza, which was precipitated by an attack by Hamas-led fighters in October 2023.

"The United States is working to dismantle the norms and institutions on which survivors of grave abuses rely," said Liz Evenson, international justice director at Human Rights Watch.

The group's former head, Kenneth Roth, called the US sanctions an attempt "to deter prosecution of Israeli war crimes and genocide in Gaza".

The United States, once one of the most active members of the Human Rights Council, has disengaged from it under President Donald Trump, alleging an anti-Israel bias.