Syria

About 60,000 Syrian refugees have returned to their homeland after the Feb. 6 earthquakes devastated their homes in Türkiye, Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said on March 27.

"Around 60,000 Syrians living in Türkiye have returned to their own land due to the loss of their homes and relatives," Akar said speaking at a military bordar post in the southern Hatay province.

Canada on March 18 moved to ease immigration for Turkish and Syrian citizens already in the country, a month after an earthquake killed more than 50,000 people in the two countries.

The 7.8 magnitude earthquake on February 6 killed more than 45,000 people in Türkiye and thousands more in neighboring Syria, and devastated hundreds of thousands of buildings.

Russian President Vladimir Putin hosted Syrian leader Bashar Assad in the Kremlin on Wednesday for talks that focused on rebuilding Syria after a devastating civil war and efforts to stabilize the region.

The U.N. Security Council voted unanimously on Dec. 9 to keep a key border crossing from Türkiye to Syria's rebel-held northwest open for critical aid deliveries for another six months. Syria's ally Russia — in a surprise move — supported the resolution.

Türkiye and Russia will resume joint patrols in northern Syria in line with a recent deal between the two countries, the Turkish defense minister has said, expressing Ankara's intention to continue a process started by Ankara, Moscow and Damascus for resolving terror and migration problems.

“About 10% of Syrians are Christians & yet less than 1,5% of Syrian refugees admitted to the US this year are Christian. There hasn’t been a good explanation for this”

Syria uncovered a large intact mosaic that dates back to the Roman era, describing it on Oct. 12 as the most important archaeological discovery since the country's conflict began 11 years ago.

Journalists were shown the mosaic in the central town of Rastan near Homs, Syria's third largest city.

Learning after a decade that her son was in Algeria, a Syrian woman living in the southern province of Hatay has brought her son back to Türkiye with a passport immediately issued by the Interior Ministry.

Türkiye's defense, interior and culture and tourism ministries have started a joint effort to retrieve historical artifacts smuggled out of Syria by terrorists in the region, local media has said.

A large number of historical artifacts have been seized so far from smugglers who took advantage of the turmoil in Syria and terrorists organizing plans for them.

Türkiye has welcomed the extension of the U.N. cross-border mechanism for humanitarian assistance to northwest Syria although it is only for a six-month period.