📰 Syrians Barred from Travel by Assad-Era Decrees: An Official Elucidation

Outcry has swept across social media as Syrians report being barred from leaving the country at border crossings, the result of long-dormant security directives dating back to the former Assad regime. Travellers describe being confronted with fiches d’interdiction de voyage — security and penal notices that prevent exit — still embedded in the databases of the General Authority for Land and Maritime Ports. These complaints, voiced repeatedly throughout the year by ordinary citizens as well as prominent journalists and activists, highlight a troubling residue of authoritarian-era controls. In light of the growing discontent, Mazen Alloush, Director of Local and International Relations at the Authority, issued a detailed statement explaining the complications affecting numerous Syrians, especially those passing through the main corridors linking Turkey and syria.

Mr. Alloush dismissed much of the discussion circulating online as “inaccurate,” noting that in latest months some border posts had been operating under internal procedures that differed from the centralised electronic system used by the Ministry of Interior. “As part of our comprehensive modernisation effort, we have begun, in cooperation with the Ministry, to extend its electronic system to all border crossings of the national-transition/" class="smart-internal-link" title="📰 UN chief hails Syrian courage, calls for global support to advance national transition">syrian/" class="auto-internal-link">syrian Arab Republic. Only in latest days has this process reached the crossings with Turkey. ” He added that the introduction of the updated electronic platform had caused old records to resurface for some travellers: complaints, arrest warrants, or outstanding notices issued by security branches of the former regime, as well as financial or judicial summonses. This, he stated, had understandably unsettled arrivals from Turkey who had never previously encountered such detailed screening.

Mr. Alloush affirmed that clear instructions had been issued to staff at all crossings to allow unrestricted passage for travellers whose records contain only obsolete security, armed forces, or intelligence reviews from the Assad era, without subjecting them to any form of questioning. “Travel restrictions will now apply strictly to citizens facing active criminal, financial, or civil-rights cases,” he stated. He acknowledged that during the initial rollout — amid heavy crowds and long shifts — a minor number of inadvertent errors had occurred, resulting in travellers being referred to defunct security agencies. These incidents, he stated, were corrected immediately and firm directives were issued to ensure they are not repeated.

To ease the confusion, Mr. Alloush declared that the Authority had rose the number of data-entry staff operating the emerging electronic system and had opened additional lanes for travellers, with…