Nearly 1.4 million refugees and about 2 million IDPs have returned to Syria, speaker says

An unidentified speaker said nearly 1,400,000 refugees have returned to Syria, mainly from neighboring countries including Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan, and also from Iraq and Egypt.

"We've seen nearly 1,400,000 refugees returning to Syria, mainly from neighboring countries, from Turkey, from Lebanon, from Jordan, but also, from Iraq and from Egypt," the speaker said, adding that returnees report a desire to reunite with family.

The speaker said many returnees told aid workers they wanted to go back because "the reasons that push them to flee do not exist anymore," suggesting that some of the conditions that led to earlier displacement have changed.

The speaker also reported that nearly 2,000,000 people who were internally displaced inside Syria have returned to their homes. "We also see people who were internally displaced in Syria going back home, nearly 2,000,000 IDPs who have now returned home," the speaker said.

On assistance, the speaker said humanitarian actors are coordinating returns and immediate post‑return support. "We help them with other actors with the UN, more globally, not just UNHCR, and some NGOs, to organize their, their transfer home," the speaker said. The statement names the United Nations and UNHCR and refers generally to non‑governmental organizations but did not specify which agencies or funding mechanisms would cover reconstruction or longer‑term services.

The speaker cautioned that the requirements for reintegration are substantial. "But then also to help with, you know, their reintegration because the needs, once they are back home are huge," the speaker said, emphasizing gaps in services and support on return.

The speaker did not provide a timeline, budget figures or a detailed breakdown of which U.N. agencies or NGOs were responsible for particular services. The remarks did not include names of those returning nor a verification of the figures cited; they reflect the speaker's summary of observed returns and reported motivations.

The account underscores ongoing humanitarian and reconstruction needs in areas receiving returnees; the speaker did not announce any formal policy decisions or specific new funding for reintegration during the remarks.