WORLD / MID-EAST
First organized convoy of displaced Syrians returns to Ras al-Ain after 7 years
By Xinhua Published: Aug 11, 2026 11:49 AM
Trucks loaded with the belongings of displaced Syrian families line up as a convoy prepares to head toward the city of Ras al-Ain and its surrounding villages in Hasakah province, northeastern Syria, Aug. 10, 2026. More than 400 Syrian families returned to the city of Ras al-Ain in northeastern Hasakah province and its surrounding villages on Monday, marking the first organized convoy of displaced residents heading home in that area after nearly seven years of displacement. (Str/Xinhua)

Trucks loaded with the belongings of displaced Syrian families line up as a convoy prepares to head toward the city of Ras al-Ain and its surrounding villages in Hasakah province, northeastern Syria, Aug. 10, 2026. More than 400 Syrian families returned to the city of Ras al-Ain in northeastern Hasakah province and its surrounding villages on Monday, marking the first organized convoy of displaced residents heading home in that area after nearly seven years of displacement. (Str/Xinhua)


A man waves as a convoy carrying displaced Syrian families heads toward the city of Ras al-Ain and its surrounding villages in Hasakah province, northeastern Syria, Aug. 10, 2026. More than 400 Syrian families returned to the city of Ras al-Ain in northeastern Hasakah province and its surrounding villages on Monday, marking the first organized convoy of displaced residents heading home in that area after nearly seven years of displacement. (Str/Xinhua)

A man waves as a convoy carrying displaced Syrian families heads toward the city of Ras al-Ain and its surrounding villages in Hasakah province, northeastern Syria, Aug. 10, 2026. More than 400 Syrian families returned to the city of Ras al-Ain in northeastern Hasakah province and its surrounding villages on Monday, marking the first organized convoy of displaced residents heading home in that area after nearly seven years of displacement. (Str/Xinhua)

More than 400 Syrian families returned to the city of Ras al-Ain in northeastern Hasakah province and its surrounding villages on Monday, marking the first organized convoy of displaced residents heading home in that area after nearly seven years of displacement.

The convoy included 410 families who had been staying at al-Twaina camp in Hasakah, according to information obtained by Xinhua and the government-run Ikhbaria TV.

The operation involved coordination among the Syrian interim authorities, local authorities and other parties as part of efforts to facilitate the return of people displaced by years of conflict in the country's ethnically diverse northeast.

Mahmoud Jamil, spokesman for the Committee of Displaced People from Ras al-Ain, told Xinhua that around 14,000 displaced families from Ras al-Ain and its countryside are officially registered with the committee, while the overall number of displaced families from the area is estimated at around 20,000.

He said future convoys are expected to depart every seven to 10 days, with the committee aiming to facilitate the return of displaced residents within a maximum of two months.

Ras al-Ain became a major flashpoint in October 2019 when Türkiye launched a military operation against the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) along a stretch of the Syrian-Turkish border. Turkish forces and allied Syrian armed groups subsequently took control of Ras al-Ain and nearby areas, while the fighting displaced large numbers of residents.

Monday's convoy offered the displaced families a long-awaited chance to return home after years of displacement.

"We left the city of Ras al-Ain seven years ago, and finally we are going back," said Fahd Ali, who had been living in al-Twaina camp. "We also hope everyone can go back home, whether Arab or Kurd, from all the camps."

Another returnee, Ali Sheikh Ahmad, recalled moving from place to place before eventually settling in the al-Twaina camp, where he endured years of hardship. "Returning home was a moment of deep happiness after years of uncertainty," he said.

The return comes after the Syrian interim authorities and the SDF reached agreements earlier this year aimed at integrating military and civilian institutions in the northeast into the Syrian state. The arrangements and related measures also addressed Kurdish cultural and linguistic rights and the return of displaced people.

Implementation has since moved forward gradually. In May, a UN official said discussions were continuing on military and civilian integration, while a preliminary roadmap had been agreed to implement the deal in Hasakah.

Elsewhere in northern Syria, organized returns have already taken place. In July, around 1,000 displaced families from Afrin who had been living in Hasakah and other areas east of the Euphrates returned home in another organized operation.

The movements are part of a much broader return trend across Syria following the political transition that began in December 2024.

Chun Ki Ambrose Chiu, senior repatriation officer with the UN refugee agency UNHCR in Syria, recently told Xinhua that an estimated 1.7 million Syrians had returned from abroad since December 2024, while nearly 2 million had returned from internal displacement.

The figures are broadly consistent with recent UN assessments. Despite the trend, around 5.5 million people remained internally displaced and 15.6 million still required humanitarian assistance, according to the United Nations.

Displaced Syrians travel with their belongings aboard a truck as a convoy heads toward the city of Ras al-Ain and its surrounding villages in Hasakah province, northeastern Syria, Aug. 10, 2026. More than 400 Syrian families returned to the city of Ras al-Ain in northeastern Hasakah province and its surrounding villages on Monday, marking the first organized convoy of displaced residents heading home in that area after nearly seven years of displacement. (Str/Xinhua)

Displaced Syrians travel with their belongings aboard a truck as a convoy heads toward the city of Ras al-Ain and its surrounding villages in Hasakah province, northeastern Syria, Aug. 10, 2026. More than 400 Syrian families returned to the city of Ras al-Ain in northeastern Hasakah province and its surrounding villages on Monday, marking the first organized convoy of displaced residents heading home in that area after nearly seven years of displacement. (Str/Xinhua)


Vehicles carrying displaced Syrian families and their belongings gather before departing for the city of Ras al-Ain and its surrounding villages in Hasakah province, northeastern Syria, Aug. 10, 2026. More than 400 Syrian families returned to the city of Ras al-Ain in northeastern Hasakah province and its surrounding villages on Monday, marking the first organized convoy of displaced residents heading home in that area after nearly seven years of displacement. (Str/Xinhua)

Vehicles carrying displaced Syrian families and their belongings gather before departing for the city of Ras al-Ain and its surrounding villages in Hasakah province, northeastern Syria, Aug. 10, 2026. More than 400 Syrian families returned to the city of Ras al-Ain in northeastern Hasakah province and its surrounding villages on Monday, marking the first organized convoy of displaced residents heading home in that area after nearly seven years of displacement. (Str/Xinhua)