Austria will be allowed to deport a 19-year old Syrian after the Strasbourg-based European Court of Human Rights lifted an injunction. The case may lead to similar deportations as Europe clamps down on asylum seekers and refugees.
In a statement on Wednesday (24 September), the court said the 19-year old didn’t face any “real and imminent risk of irreparable harm” should he be returned to Syria, following the collapse of the Assad regime in December of last year.
Not named in the court documents, the 19-year old fled to Austria in October 2022 in the hopes of escaping a war that reportedly forced young men from government-held areas of his native region in the Hasaka governorate in northeastern Syria to join pro-Assad regime ranks.
Once in Austria, he was denied international protection and ended up jailed for shoplifting and robbery. After serving his sentence he was sent to an immigration detention centre pending his removal from the country.
But last month, the Strasbourg court imposed so-called “interim measures” to postpone his deportation given the potential dangers and risks once returned to Syria.
Those measures have now been lifted by the court amid claims the current general security situation in Syria poses no immediate risk.
Recent rulings from Austrian courts also highlight that he has family in Syria. They also said he spoke the local language, was healthy, and could rely on a social network when he returned.
Meanwhile, Austria has so far only deported two people to Syria since the fall of the Assad regime, when extremist troops toppled the ruler and took power. According to reports from Amnesty International the situation on the ground is not clear and especially in northern and eastern Syria still in turmoil.
The first deportation in July was the first-ever from an EU member state to Syria since the war had started in 2011.
According to his family and legal representation in Austria, the man disappeared after Austrian authorities handed him over to Syrian representatives in Istanbul. The UN committee on enforced disappearances has asked the Austrian government to inquire with the Syrian authorities about his whereabouts.
Last week, a second man was deported directly to the Syrian capital of Damascus.
Critics say such moves seek to conflate migration and crime in order to crack down on people seeking safety in Europe.
The ruling paves the way for other European countries to follow suit — amid rising anti-migration sentiments and European centre-right parties desperately trying to win rightwing voters over.
The Strasbourg-court’s decision from Wednesday is likely to please nine member states which had last May condemned the institution for being outdated, especially when it comes to deporting people with criminal convictions.
Signed by Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Italy, and Poland, the joint letter in May condemned the court for placing rights restrictions on deportations of "criminal foreign nationals".
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Hannah Kriwak is a junior reporter from Austria at EUobserver, covering European politics.
Hannah Kriwak is a junior reporter from Austria at EUobserver, covering European politics.