Limited movement of return. 900 Syrians returned from Iraq in 2026

Only  about 900 Syrian refugees  have returned since the beginning of 2026, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) announced, stressing that all returns are carried out voluntarily and after individual consultations that ensure that the decision stems from the desire of the refugee himself, and these figures come as an extension of the return movement recorded in 2025, when 6,811 Syrians returned from Iraq to their country.

UNHCR spokeswoman in Iraq, Lily Carlyle, said Iraq is currently hosting more than 346,000 refugees and asylum seekers, 88% of whom are Syrians, with a clear concentration in the Kurdistan region, which is home to 82% of the total refugees.

Karel pointed out that a third of the refugees in Iraq live in 9 camps, while the rest reside in cities, especially Erbil, Dohuk and Sulaymaniyah, while those outside the region are distributed in the central and southern provinces, especially Baghdad.

The number of returnees during 2025 has reached  less than  7,000, considering that the movement of return from Iraq remains limited compared to other neighboring countries, noting that most refugees plan to stay in Iraq for an indefinite period, based on a survey conducted by UNHCR in June 2024, which concluded that only 4% want to return within one year, reflecting the preference of the majority to stay in the  Kurdistan Region  currently.

  UNHCR  continues to provide protection and support services through a network of 79 community centers inside Syria, including assistance with civil documents, psychological support, shelter and livelihoods for returnees, in addition to transportation assistance and cash grants according to available capabilities.

More than 190,000 Syrian refugees return from Jordan

  The UNHCR in Jordan  revealed on Tuesday, May 5, that more than 190,000 registered Syrian refugees from Jordan have returned to Syria since the fall of the former Syrian regime on December 8, 2024, until the beginning of May 2026.

UNHCR spokesman Yousef Taha said that this year alone witnessed the return of 16,000 refugees, distributed over the first four months in similar proportions, with the month of January recording a peak of 4,500 returnees.

Taha pointed out that 58% of these people returned as families, while 46,000 of them left Zaatari and Azraq camps, while the vast majority (76%) preferred to return from Jordan's main urban areas and governorates.

The UN official complained of  a severe funding crisis  facing UNHCR, with only $65 million available out of the $280 million required for its operations in Jordan, leaving a financial deficit estimated at $215 million (76.8 percent).

Taha announced that about 81,000 refugees are currently remaining in the Zaatari and Azraq camps, while the destinations of Syrian returnees are mainly distributed in the governorates of: Daraa, Homs, Damascus countryside, Aleppo, Damascus and Hama.

 660,000 Syrians return from Turkey

In this context,  the Turkish Ministry of Interior stated in an official statement that the number of Syrians returning from Turkey to Syria during the past 17 months amounted to about 660 thousand people, noting that the number of Syrians who voluntarily and safely returned from Turkey since 2016 until today amounted to  one million and 407 thousand and 568 Syrians.

The Turkish Interior Ministry's statement came after Turkish media circulated statements questioning  Turkish official figures, as the ministry confirmed that the information referred to was obtained through the analysis of border crossings, reports of population movements, and various data sources.

According to the updated data of the Migration Department, the number of Syrians under temporary protection inside Turkey decreased from 2,280,542 Syrians, to 667,565 to Syria after December 2024.

The Turkish Interior Ministry stated that the data of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) indicates that 1,630,874 Syrians have returned to Syria throughout the region since December 8, 2024

The Ministry of Interior explained that given the distribution of the number of returnees by countries, Turkey tops the list with 639,995 returnees.