After calling for Syrians in Germany to ‘go back’ home, Merz criticised
Corroborated by 2 sources from 2 publishers
TL;DR
Germany's Chancellor Friedrich Merz says that he and the Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa hope that 80% of the Syrians in Germany will return home in the next three years. During the civil war in Syria, almost a million Syrians sought refuge in Germany. Speaking after a meeting with Sharaa in Berlin, Chancellor Merz said that more than a year after the end of the war, the situation in Syria had "now changed fundamentally" and that "the need for protection must therefore be reassessed".
Sources
1
BBC News (World)
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy41vqx4pdzo?at_campaign=rss&at_medium=RSS
2
BBC News
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy41vqx4pdzo?at_campaign=rss&at_medium=RSS
3
BBC News (World)
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy41vqx4pdzo?at_campaign=rss&at_medium=RSS
4
The Guardian (World)
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/mar/31/friedrich-merz-criticised-syrians-germany-return