In this latest NCHS paper, “Syrian refugees in the EU and Turkey: Impossible to return, so hard to stay”, Ilker Gökhan Sen, Guest researcher at the University of Bergen, examines policies and practices relating to Syrian refugees in the EU and Turkey, particularly the narrowing of asylum rights following the 2015 refugee crisis.

Sen begins with an overview of the current situation faced by Syrian refugees, demonstrating that the in Syria is not suitable for the safe and dignified return of refugees.

The paper then outlines current statistics and public opinion relating to Syrian refugees, as well as the impact of the EU-Turkey Migration Deal. Sen highlights how legislative amendments and administrative practices have served to narrow asylum rights following the 2015 refugee crisis.

You can access the paper here or download a copy here: NCHS Syrian refugees in the EU and Turkey: Impossible to stay, so hard to return (humanitarianstudies.no)

Ilker Gökhan Sen is a Guest researcher at the Faculty of Law at the University of Bergen. He holds a PhD in law from the University of Zurich, Switzerland and taught constitutional law for several years in Turkey.

This paper is supported by the NCHS Research Network on Humanitarian Efforts dynamic seed funding initiative, funded by the Research Council of Norway.