GENEVA, Dec 18 (NNN-APA) – The United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) Director for the Middle East and North Africa, Rema Jamous Imseis, said yesterday that, around one million Syrian refugees may return to their homeland between Jan and Jun, next year.
“We have forecasted that we hope to see somewhere in the order of one million Syrians returning between Jan and Jun of next year,” said Imseis, during a press conference in Geneva
She described the recent developments as bringing “a tremendous amount of hope” for resolving the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Syria. However, she emphasised that, regime change does not necessarily mean the end of the ongoing crisis, highlighting the immense challenges ahead.
Imseis urged countries hosting Syrian refugees not to rush sending them back, and stressed that, Syrians should maintain their right to seek asylum.
Imseis pointed out that, despite the returns, over one million people have been newly displaced within Syria, in the past three weeks, most of them women and children.
She noted that, it is still too early to determine whether it is safe for people to return to Syria, and called on refugees and other concerned individuals, to have more time to evaluate the safety of returning.– NNN-APA