Attachments
Executive Summary
The rapid and dramatic fall of the Assad government on 8 December 2024 represents a seismic shift in the political and humanitarian situation in Syria and the region.
Syrians living outside of Syria, including the 5.5 million Syrian refugees in Türkiye, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Egypt, have expressed elation and hope about the prospect of returning to their homes. Many have also expressed caution, waiting to see how this situation develops.
By early February 2025, UNHCR estimates that some 270,000 Syrians have returned to their country since the events of early December.
UNHCR has been carrying out regional surveys on Syrian refugees’ perceptions and intentions on return since 2017, to ensure refugee voices are at the heart of programme planning and discussions about their future. Following the recent events in Syria, UNHCR conducted a Refugee Perception and Intention Survey (RPIS) to better understand and quantify the views of Syrian refugees in Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Egypt 1 .
A total of 4,500 Syrian refugees living in those four countries were randomly selected for this survey, and 3,368 of those were successfully reached. Among those reached, 80% of respondents were focal points, who are often head of households and primary decision makers2. The findings of this report represent a regional aggregation of country survey findings. Variations between responses in each country are highlighted in the report where relevant.
Key findings of this survey included:
- Over a quarter of Syrian refugees intend to go back to rebuild their lives in the next 12 months.
- More than half of Syrian refugees who do not intend to or are undecided about return in the next 12 months intend to return in the next five years.
- The vast majority of Syrian refugees hope to return to Syria one day.
- Almost all refugees who plan to return in the next 12 months plan to return to their place of origin.
- Key barriers to return include concerns over available housing and status of refugees’ own properties, safety and security, economic challenges inside Syria and concerns about available basic services.
- Over 60% of refugees consider it important to conduct a “go and see” visit before making a final decision to return.