Iraq's broken promise: How Syrian refugees are at risk of unlawful deportation despite legal protections

In the harsh sunlight, the asphalt of the avenue glistens as a discreet multi-story building stands tall in the Iraqi city of Erbil. Its facade is ambiguous, offering no clues as to whether it's a hotel, an office block, or an apartment building.

Its spacious interior provides a little more insight, but at the end of the stairway, an open door beckons. It appears to be an empty house, but on the living room floor lies a spread of mattresses, pillows, and blankets. 

Before settling onto the floor, 24-year-old Alaa unzips a blue suitcase and pulls out a handful of documents and small photographs, remnants of a Syria he left behind three years ago.

"This is my brother. The military took him in 2013 when he was 18, and he died in Sednaya prison, near Damascus," he says, holding up a tiny square photograph. 

"The government informed us of his death, but until now we have no idea what really happened to him. They also asked us to go to the facilities to collect his belongings, but we didn’t because disappearances were common under those circumstances," Alaa tells The New Arab.

According to the UNHCR, Iraq hosts approximately 280,000 Syrians, most of whom reside in the Kurdistan region.

On April 3, the Kurdistan Regional Government suspended the issuance of visas to Syrian nationals and, despite the Iraqi Supreme Judicial Council's August 2023 ban on the deportation of Syrian refugees, possession of a residency permit would be no longer a guarantee for Alaa. 

On June 27, Human Rights Watch (HRW) denounced that Iraqi federal security forces, along with those of Iraqi Kurdistan, have deported several Syrians "even though they possessed official Iraqi documents, enabling them to stay and work in the country, or were registered as asylum seekers with the office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)." 

When Alaa arrived in Erbil from his home city, Hama, he quickly secured his residency and work permit through phantom companies while working under abusive labour conditions.  

“With a residency card, you might find a job that barely covers your basic needs. But once your residency expires you will probably work somewhere else and after a month or so, your boss might tell you he has no money to pay you and ask you to leave,” adds Majd, Alaa’s 20-year-old roommate who arrived in Erbil from Damascus in January this year.  

With his documents expiring two years ago, Alaa has been forced into hiding, constantly changing his address. He now lives with Majd and four other Syrians who soon will find themselves in the same legal situation. 

"In my daily life, I use an alias and avoid going out because if the police stop me and see that I don't have valid documents anymore, they will arrest me," he says, turning his residency card over as if hoping the expiration date would change by magic. 

UNCHR Iraq staff told The New Arab that: “The organisation and partners intervene when informed that asylum-seekers and refugees are at risk of deportation and advocate with relevant authorities for the deportation to be halted, which is often respected.

“No one should be returned to a country where they would face torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment and other irreparable harm. The protection of those who enter Iraq to seek asylum remains the primary responsibility of Iraqi authorities.” 

According to Hanny Megally, a member of the UN Syria Commission of Inquiry, both government-controlled and opposition-held areas of Syria pose significant risks for returning refugees.

“If you fled Syria, then you are already viewed with suspicion,” Megally says, adding that suspicion can lead to arrests, torture, death in custody or disappearing in any territory inside the country. 

“We have found that even those who returned following the so-called reconciliation agreements with the Syrian Government have been tortured,” the official adds. 

“Return must be voluntary, safe, dignified, sustainable, to the destination of the returnee’s choice and without risk of irreparable harm upon return on account of torture, ill-treatment or other serious breaches of human rights obligations. But Syria remains unsafe for return.

"The situation for Syrian refugees in the region is very worrying, and so is the movement among certain EU member states to start considering some areas inside Syria safe for return. There are no such areas inside Syria,” he concludes. 

Beyond the security risks, the humanitarian crisis within the country has reached its highest point since the conflict began in 2011.

Nearly 13 million people are facing severe food shortages and nine out of ten Syrians live below the poverty line, according to the Commission. Returning to Syria offers little hope for rebuilding a life under such dire circumstances. 

Both Alaa and Majd are considering this option, despite the risks involved, if they cannot renew their Iraqi residency. If so, they will try to flee Syria again, this time to Europe through Turkey. 

Megally finds this prospect deeply concerning. “These attempts to flee happen at a terrible cost. Land owned for generations is being sold to pay smuggles for potentially life-threatening passages, like perilous sea journeys or dangerous overland treks to reach the borders of Europe.” 

On July 10, the Iraqi Ministry of Interior and UNHCR launched the Administrative Instructions for the Affairs of Asylum-Seekers in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.

According to the UN organisation, “This will open further opportunity for refugees to live in safety and dignity and access to public services with timely issuance of documentation.” 

Alejandro Matran is a journalist, actor, and musician. He is also the founder of @thenewmidd

Follow him on X: @AlejandroMatran