Greece Ministry of Migration appeals asylum revocations for Syrians

The Greek Ministry of Migration and Asylum has ordered its legal services to appeal 20 decisions made by the Independent Second Instance Committees of the Asylum Authority. These committee decisions had previously overturned the revocation of asylum status for several Syrian citizens.

Minister Thanos Plevris stated that the Ministry intends to exhaust all legal remedies to revoke international protection statuses where legal requirements are no longer met. The Ministry noted that some of the overturned revocations involved individuals with irrevocable convictions for crimes including human trafficking, theft, and drug trafficking.

The Asylum Authority's decisions had cited factors such as the difficult economic situation in Syria and the potential for mandatory military service as reasons to maintain asylum status. However, the Ministry maintains these decisions contain legal deficiencies and aims to facilitate the return of individuals to their countries of origin.