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 many 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 recent 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 Syrian Arab Republic. Only in recent 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 said, 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, military, 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 small number of inadvertent errors had occurred, resulting in travellers being referred to defunct security agencies. These incidents, he said, were corrected immediately and firm directives were issued to ensure they are not repeated.
To ease the confusion, Mr. Alloush announced that the Authority had increased the number of data-entry staff operating the new electronic system and had opened additional lanes for travellers, with particular focus on the busy Al-Salama and Bab al-Hawa crossings. In a related development, Interior Minister Anas Khattab revealed two days earlier that more than 150,000 travel-restriction notices had been deleted from the Immigration and Passports Directorate, targeting cases linked to the former regime’s practices.
This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
