Foreign fighters and other foreigners who flocked to Syria during its civil war have formally petitioned the country’s new Islamist-led government for citizenship, arguing they deserve recognition after helping rebels topple former president Bashar al-Assad.
The petition, submitted Thursday to Syria’s interior ministry and seen by Reuters, requests full Syrian nationality and passports for thousands of foreign residents, including fighters, aid workers and journalists.
Many lack valid documentation, with some stripped of their original citizenship and fearing prison or execution if forced to return home.
“We shared bread, we shared sorrow, and we shared in the hope for a free and just future for Syria … Yet for us, the muhajireen (emigrants), our status remains uncertain,” the letter reads.
“We respectfully request that the Syrian leadership, with wisdom, foresight and brotherhood, grant us full Syrian citizenship.”
The petition was led by Bilal Abdul Kareem, a U.S.-born journalist and long-time resident of rebel-held Syria, who said the initiative represents thousands of foreigners from more than a dozen countries, including Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Britain, Germany, France, Canada, Chechnya and Xinjiang.
The fate of foreign fighters has been a divisive issue since Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) seized power late last year. While interim president Ahmed al-Sharaa previously suggested that foreign fighters and their families might be naturalized, no such decision has been announced.
A spokesperson for the interior ministry confirmed the matter rests with the Syrian presidency, which has not commented.
Supporters of the petition argue that citizenship would allow foreigners to settle, own property and integrate into Syrian society, while also making them accountable under national law. But the proposal risks alienating both Syrians, some of whom view the foreigners as extremists, and foreign governments whose support Damascus seeks for reconstruction and legitimacy.
Tensions remain high over the role of foreigners in the war. Some have been accused of sectarian violence, including atrocities against minority Alawite and Druze communities. A Reuters investigation earlier this year linked non-Syrian fighters, including Uyghurs and Chechens, to mass killings in coastal regions.
Still, many foreign residents say their priorities have shifted. “I have a 4-year-old boy who should join school soon, and I have to think about his future away from the battlefields of jihad,” one Uyghur fighter told Reuters.
Analysts warn that the issue could test the new leadership’s ability to balance loyalty to its foreign allies with the demands of Syrian society.
“This should be addressed through dialogue with a broad spectrum of Syrian society, which still holds diverse opinions on the matter,” said researcher Orwa Ajjoub.
Written By Rodney Mbua
