EUAA COI Report. Socio-economic situation in Damascus City

English

The purpose of this report is to provide relevant information for the assessment of international protection status determination, including refugee status and subsidiary protection.

The report covers the period of April 2021 - July 2022, and it is an update of the EUAA COI Report: Syria - Socio-economic situation: Damascus City, published in April 2021. It provides relevant information regarding the socio-economic situation in the city of Damascus, including information about internal mobility and freedom of movement. This will inform the update of the chapter on Internal Protection Alternative within the EUAA Country Guidance on Syria 2022.

The first chapter provides a brief overview of the city of Damascus; the second chapter covers issues related to freedom of movement and settling in the city, and the third chapter provides an overview of key socioeconomic indicators for Damascus.

The drafting of this report was finalised on 23 August 2022. Any event taking place after this date is not included in this report.

This report was co-drafted by the European Union Agency for Asylum COI Sector and the Austrian Centre for Country of Origin and Asylum Research and Documentation (ACCORD).

The following departments and organisations have reviewed the report:

• Belgium, Office of the Commissioner General for Refugees and Stateless Persons, Cedoca (Centre for Documentation and Research);

• Denmark, Danish Immigration Service.

This report is produced in line with the EUAA COI Report Methodology (2019) and the EUAA COI Writing and Referencing Guide (2019).

Policy

Since 2011, Syria has been involved in a bloody, internal armed conflict which has resulted in a very high number of victims, displaced persons and refugees. The opposing parties do not spare the civilian population. Every day, on a large scale and in the most barbaric manner, both the Syrian army and the armed opposition forces violate international humanitarian law and human rights. In many cases, civilians are targeted for ethnic or religious reasons or because they are perceived to be part of another political movement.

In recent years, the Syrian army managed to recapture significant parts of the country from the rebels or jihadists. An analysis of the security situation shows that the number of military confrontations in Syria has clearly decreased since the second half of 2018, that the impact of the conflict in Syria now differs considerably from region to region, and that Syria as of 2020 can be divided into five geographical zones.

The civil war has had a devastating impact on the civilian population. There are estimated to be a total of 13.4 million Syrians who, as a result of the armed conflict, require humanitarian assistance. This is an increase of 21% compared to 2020. More than 90% are said to be living below the poverty line. 6.1 million Syrians are displaced within Syria. In addition, 5.6 million have fled the country.

Land: 
Syria

Information about the asylum procedure, tailored to the asylum seeker, can be found at : asyluminbelgium.be.