The Austrian Interior Ministry announced that since the fall of the Assad regime last December, it has begun proceedings to prevent the granting of asylum to 2,400 Syrians, as part of a new policy announced by Interior Minister Gerhard Kerner, which includes suspending decisions on granting asylum to Syrians, in addition to preparing a plan for their deportation or voluntary return to their homeland.

The ministry said that new asylum applications filed by Syrians were currently being registered, but were not being processed. It added that 80 Syrians had chosen to leave Austria voluntarily since the fall of the Assad regime.

The Federal Agency for Care and Support said it had held about 440 counseling sessions to help Syrian refugees organize their return. People who choose to return voluntarily receive financial support of 1,000 euros, but such an agreement means they lose their protection status in Austria.

Minister Kerner of the Austrian People's Party explained for his part that asylum procedures for Syrian citizens would remain suspended. “Syria now needs its citizens to rebuild the country,” he added.

He stressed that “asylum is not granted for life, but temporary protection that cannot be granted if there are no compelling reasons” and stressed that priority in forced deportation would be given to criminals and those who do not want to integrate and work.

NGOs such as Kretas and Diakoni criticized this policy, which the government began following the fall of the Assad regime, noting that the situation in Syria remains ambiguous and complex.

Since the fall of the Assad regime, calls have been raised across Europe to start returning Syrians to their country, and most EU countries have frozen the processing of asylum applications submitted by Syrians, justifying their decisions by monitoring developments in the region in light of the new forces taking control of Syria.