Changes from resolution motion to resolution motion joint

RemovedB100162/2025

European Parliament resolution on the need for EU support towards a just transition and reconstruction in Syria

(2025/2569(RSP))

The European Parliament,

Change 1

Removed– having regard to its previous resolutions on Syria,

Added– having regard to UN Security Council Resolution 2254 (2015) of 18 December 2015,

Removed– having regard to the UN Charter,

Added– having regard to the establishment of the UN Independent Institution on Missing Persons in the Syrian Arab Republic, under UN General Assembly Resolution 77/301 of 29 June 2023,

Removed– having regard to UN Security Council Resolution 2254, as adopted on 18 December 2015,

Added– having regard to its recommendation of 28 February 2024 to the Council, the Commission and the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy on the situation in Syria,

Removed– having regard to UN General Assembly Resolution 77/301 of 29 June 2023, establishing the Independent Institution on Missing Persons in the Syrian Arab Republic,

Added– having regard to the statement by the High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy of 9 December 2024,

Removed– having regard to the report of the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic of 11 March 2024 and to the report of 12 August 2024,

Added– having regard to the Council conclusions of 19 December 2024,

Removed– having regard to the European Council conclusions of 19 December 2024,

Added– having regard to the orders of the Paris Judicial Court of 14 November 2023 and 21 January 2025 issuing international arrest warrants for Bashar al-Assad and members of his family, and to universal jurisdiction cases in European courts,

Removed– having regard to the European Council conclusions of 27 January 2025 and the outcome of the Foreign Affairs Council meeting of 24 February 2025,

Added– having regard to the joint statement by the Governments of France, Syria, Bahrain, Canada, Egypt, Germany, Greece, Iraq, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Türkiye, the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom, the European Union, the United Nations Special Envoy for Syria, the Secretary General of the League of Arab States and the Secretary General of the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf of 13 February 2025,

Removed– having regard to the European Council conclusions of 16 November 2015 on the EU’s support to transitional justice,

Added– having regard to Council Decision (CFSP) 2025/406 of 24 February 2025 amending Decision 2013/255/CFSP concerning restrictive measures in view of the situation in Syria,

RemovedA. whereas on 8 December 2024 an alliance of rebel groups led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) overthrew the Assad regime in Syria, marking the end of over five decades of autocratic family rule in Syria, including 14 years of war;

Added– having regard to the statement issued following Syria’s National Dialogue Conference, held in Damascus on 25 February 2025,

RemovedB. whereas on 29 January 2025 Ahmed al-Sharaa was named interim president of Syria and was tasked with forming a temporary legislative council; whereas the interim president has announced plans for a new constitution and for holding elections in four to five years from now; whereas rebel military commander Hassan Abdul Ghani has announced that all institutions related to the old regime, including the 2012 constitution, the People’s Assembly, the Baath Party and all revolutionary factions – military, political and civil – would be dissolved and integrated into new state institutions;

Added– having regard to the statement of 8 March 2025 by the Spokesperson of the European External Action Service on the latest developments in Syria,

RemovedC. whereas only two out of seven people appointed to the preparatory committee for the National Dialogue Conference were women;

Added– having regard to Rules 136(2) and (4) of its Rules of Procedure,

RemovedD. whereas on 24 and 25 February 2025, the Syrian interim government held the announced National Dialogue Conference;

AddedA. whereas in December 2024 Syria witnessed momentous change, as a rebel coalition spearheaded by the armed group Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the Syrian National Army (SNA), the Southern Operations Room (formerly Southern Front) and several other opposition forces toppled Bashar al-Assad’s murderous regime; whereas the historic collapse of the Assad dynasty marked the end of half of a century of suffering for the Syrian people, with unprecedented tyranny and chaos unfolding after Bashar al-Assad brutally repressed the 2011 uprising and led the country into civil war, as well as the beginning of a new chapter for the Syrian people and the broader Middle East;

Change 2

ChangedE.B. whereas sincethe 2011,fallen halfAssad aregime millionengaged Syriansin havesystematic diedrepression, mass arrests, torture, enforced disappearances, extrajudicial executions and 14other milliongrave havehuman beenrights forciblyviolations, displacedand asis aresponsible resultfor ofdocumented war crimes and crimes against humanity, including the fiercedeliberate repressiontargeting andof demographiccivilians, engineeringsiege bywarfare Assadleading andto hismass allies,starvation, Russiathe use of barrel bombs and Iran;the whereasdeployment betweenof 2011chemical andweapons, Augustin 2024,violation atof leastinternational 157law; 634whereas peoplesince were2011, arrestedat byleast thehalf regimea forcesmillion Syrians have died and other14 partiesmillion tohave thebeen warforced into Syriaflee andtheir arehomes, stillof underwhich arrestroughly and/or7 million have been forciblyinternally disappeared,displaced, withas frequenta occurrencesresult of deathsthe infierce custodyrepression and extrajudicialdemographic executions;engineering whereasby tensthe ofAssad thousandsregime ofand peoplehis wentallies, missingas duringwell as at the Assadhands family’sof ruleterrorist andgroups; theirwhereas the fates and whereabouts of tens of thousands of people remain unknown;

Change 3

RemovedF. whereas over 90 % of Syrians live below the poverty line, with at least 13 million – more than half of the population – unable to access or afford enough quality food; whereas at least 16.5 million Syrians across Syria require some form of humanitarian aid to meet their basic needs;

AddedC. whereas Russia and Iran, under the guise of strategic alliances, were both enablers and active players in the war waged by the bloody Assad regime against its own people and used Syria as a geopolitical battleground for destabilising the region, as a hub for arms and drug trafficking, as well as a testing ground for military capabilities and tactics, systematically targeting civilian infrastructure and humanitarian aid convoys in clear violation of international law; whereas Assad’s power relied on Russia and Iran’s continued support and their supply of manpower and weapons, as well as that of their proxies, including the Wagner Group, the Lebanese Hezbollah, Iraqi militias and Afghan mercenaries; whereas his sudden fall is a clear geostrategic defeat for both countries;

RemovedG. whereas, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the humanitarian response for Syria is significantly underfunded, having secured less than 10 % of the USD 1.2 billion needed until March 2025;

AddedD. whereas after assuming a leading role in overthrowing the regime, former HTS leader Ahmed al-Sharaa was designated caretaker President and launched a political transition process, entailing plans for a new constitution and the holding of elections in four to five years from now; whereas the caretaker president was tasked with forming a temporary legislative council, appointed a caretaker government and pledged to establish, by early March 2025, a new non-sectarian, comprehensive, credible and inclusive government reflecting Syria’s ethnic and religious diversity; whereas on 24 and 25 February 2025, the Syrian interim government held the announced National Dialogue Conference; whereas the Syrian constitution of 2012 was nullified and the People’s Assembly and the Baath Party dissolved; whereas many armed groups also formally agreed to dissolve and be integrated into the Syrian army;

RemovedH. whereas despite recent adjustments, the EU sanctions policies towards Syria hinder reconstruction efforts and exacerbate the suffering of millions of Syrians struggling to access basic services;

AddedE. whereas the EU rightly refused to normalise its ties with the Assad regime right through to its demise and played a significant role as a major humanitarian donor to Syrian civilians and as host to 1.3 million refugees fleeing the conflicts; whereas since 2011, the EU and its Member States have mobilised more than EUR 33.3 billion in humanitarian, development, economic and stabilisation assistance focusing on life-saving aid, resilience programmes and the political implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 2254 (2015); whereas in December 2024 the EU launched a humanitarian air bridge to deliver emergency healthcare and other essential supplies; whereas in the aftermath of the fall of the Assad regime, some Member States announced a suspension of pending asylum applications by Syrians; whereas the EU has suspended sanctions on key economic sectors to facilitate engagement with Syria and its reconstruction;

RemovedI. whereas during the rebel offensive, Turkish-backed Syrian National Army (SNA) militias, aided by Turkish air strikes, attacked and seized control of parts of the Kurdish-dominated areas in northern Syria; whereas the continuation and intensification of attacks on Kurdish-dominated areas in northern Syria, including through improvised explosive devices, are killing civilians, including children, and causing a new displacement of over 25 000 people from Manbij and eastern Aleppo; whereas, according to Human Rights Watch, the Türkiye-SNA coalition may be responsible for war crimes in north-eastern Syria;

AddedF. whereas the caretaker government authorities control most but not all of Syrian territory, with the overall security situation in Syria remaining fragmented and volatile; whereas violent events, including revenge killings, sectarian violence and criminal activities, are seen to be increasing, particularly in the coastal and rural areas; whereas pro-Assad armed groups and, allegedly, others have conducted coordinated attacks starting on 6 March 2025 in the Latakia, Tartus and Homs governorates, leading to deadly clashes with Syrian security forces; whereas in return, members of the Syrian security forces and the SNA, foreign fighters and jihadists reportedly participated in unjustifiable retaliations and executions targeting Alawite civilians on the basis of their ethno-religious affiliation; whereas, despite the statement delivered by de facto President al-Sharaa, the fighting lasted several days and has so far caused over 1 000 casualties; whereas de-facto President al-Shaara has announced the creation of a ‘fact-finding committee’ and of a ‘higher committee’;

RemovedJ. whereas Türkiye has conducted large-scale military operations on Syrian territory, particularly targeting Kurdish-held areas, and occupies territories in northern Syria, both actions violating international law;

AddedG. whereas north-eastern Syria is still currently administered by the self-proclaimed Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria and controlled militarily by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF); whereas on 10 March 2025 an agreement towards their integration within all institutions of the Syrian state was jointly signed by de facto President al-Sharaa and Commander in Chief of the SDF Mazloum Abdi; whereas since December 2024, the Turkish-backed SNA militias, some of which have not been included in the transitional government, and Türkiye itself, have intensified attacks and incursions within northern Syrian territory, including attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure in the Manbij and Kobani areas, which may amount to war crimes;

Change 4

ChangedK.H. whereas Israel has occupied a part of the Syrian territory in the Golan Heights since 1967; whereas following the overthrow of the Assad regime, Israel revoked the truce of 1974has andfurther seized the UN-patrolled demilitarised zone between Syria andbeyond the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights,Heights and on 17 December 2024 declared thatrepeatedly itcarried wouldout holdstrikes on to the territory indefinitelymilitary andtargets constructin settlements;Syria; whereas Israelthe continuesIsraeli toMinister conductof airDefence raidshas ondeclared Syriathat and‘the hasIDF declaredwill thatremain allat ofthe southernsummit Syriaof shouldMount beHermon aand demilitarisedthe security zone;zone indefinitely’;

Change 5

ChangedL. whereas, as a result of the fall of the Assad regime, the regime’s main foreign supporters, Russia and Iran, have retreated from their military and naval bases and relocated their military assets and militias;I. whereas Russia seeks to retain its military bases in Syria, particularly the Tartus naval base and the Hmeimim military airfield; whereas theBashar interimal-Assad governmentand inhis Damascusfamily cancelledfled athe leasingcountry agreementand withhave thebeen Russiangranted companypolitical Stroytransgazasylum forin theRussia; civilianwhereas sectiondiplomatic ofcontact thehas portbeen ofmade Tartusbetween inRussia Januaryand 2025;the new Syrian authorities;

Change 6

RemovedM. whereas the overall security situation in Syria is volatile and violent events, including revenge killings, sectarian violence and criminal activities, are increasing, particularly in the coastal and rural areas;

AddedJ. whereas the Assad regime supported Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and recognised the occupied Luhansk and Donetsk regions in Ukraine, as well as the Abkhazia region in Georgia; whereas Ukraine’s military intelligence service systematically reported that Russia was training mercenaries recruited in Syria to support Russia’s war against Ukraine; whereas the ‘Grain from Ukraine’ initiative was deployed in Syria after the suspension of Russian food exports;

RemovedN. whereas EU Member States host over 1.3 million Syrian asylum seekers and refugees; whereas shortly after the ousting of President Assad, some Member States announced a suspension of pending asylum applications by Syrians;

AddedK. whereas Daesh has caused tremendous suffering in Syria, triggered numerous terrorist attacks worldwide and continues to operate within and from Syria, relying on its centre for external operational planning in the Badia region; whereas approximately 10 000 Daesh fighters and 40 000 Daesh family members are currently being detained in the Al-Hol and Roj detention facilities, primarily guarded by the Kurdish-led SDF; whereas Syrian security forces may reportedly take over the management of the detention facilities following the agreement of 10 March 2025 made between de facto President al-Sharaa and SDF Commander in Chief Mazloum Abdi;

RemovedO. whereas the revocation of refugee status under the 1951 Refugee Convention requires fundamental and durable changes in the country of origin, which cannot currently be demonstrated in Syria; whereas the EU Qualification Directive and the new Qualification Regulation state that when deciding on cessation due to a change in circumstances, Member States ‘shall have regard to whether the change of circumstances is of such a significant and non-temporary nature that the refugee’s fear of being persecuted can no longer be regarded as well-founded’;

AddedL. whereas Syria’s Christian population has steeply declined since 2011 due to its targeting by both the Assad regime, as well as by Daesh and other terrorist groups;

Removed1. Welcomes the fall of the Assad regime, putting an end to over 50 years of brutal dictatorship, tyranny and war; recognises the pivotal role that HTS and other armed groups played in the overturn of Assad’s rule;

AddedM. whereas the situation in Syria remains one of the world’s most acute humanitarian crises, with nine out of ten Syrians below the poverty line and almost 17 million people – 70 % of the population – requiring humanitarian assistance because of widespread food insecurity and a lack of basic infrastructure and public services;

Removed2. Echoes the Syrian people’s celebration of the fall of the Assad regime’s long and brutal reign, salutes their long-standing peaceful opposition to the regime and expresses its solidarity with all its victims and their families; acknowledges that victims, survivors and the families of victims of serious violations of international law in Syria continue to require urgent support;

AddedN. whereas, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the humanitarian response for Syria is significantly underfunded, having secured less than 10 % of the USD 1.2 billion needed until March 2025; whereas the executive order issued by US President Donald Trump’s administration, enacting a 90-day suspension of all foreign assistance programmes, including those administered by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), has and will have an impact on the humanitarian programmes and non-governmental organisations that operate on the ground in Syria; whereas the UK and several EU Member States have also announced significant decreases in their global aid budgets;

Removed3. Expresses the EU’s full commitment to supporting a Syrian-led political transition to unite and rebuild the country, in line with the core principles of UN Security Council Resolution 2254, and, to this end, engaging with Syrian civil society to support their demands, also when engaging with the de facto authorities;

AddedO. whereas Syria finds itself in a tremendously dire economic situation, with soaring inflation in the country reaching a record high level of 40.2 % in 2024, electricity shortages and rising commodity prices; whereas the collapse of the Syrian economy was exacerbated by regime corruption, predatory economic policies and reliance on illicit activities, including the production and trafficking of Captagon; whereas a colossal reconstruction effort must be undertaken while navigating the shift to an open market economy, with exports having dramatically decreased compared to pre-war levels;

Removed4. Reaffirms the fundamental role of Syrian civil society, particularly women-led initiatives, for a successful political transition and the future of Syria; calls on the Commission to strengthen Syrian civil society throughout all of its Syria programming and prioritise direct support to these organisations rather than channelling funds through international intermediaries;

AddedP. whereas 5.5 million Syrian refugees live in the five countries neighbouring Syria, namely Türkiye, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Egypt, with the EU providing financial assistance to help shoulder the associated costs; whereas approximately 500 000 internally displaced persons and 300 000 external refugees have returned to their areas of origin since the collapse of the Assad regime, with inadequate services, limited livelihoods and damaged infrastructure hindering their sustainable reintegration;

Removed5. Welcomes interim president Al-Shaara’s acknowledgement of Syria’s religious, political and cultural diversity and his pledge to work towards uniting the country, while taking note that the interim authorities currently do not yet reflect this diversity;

Added1. Praises the bravery, dignity and resilience of the Syrian people, who finally succeeded in overthrowing the cruel Assad dictatorship; pays tribute to the countless victims of the regime; calls for the EU to seize this historic opportunity to support a Syrian-led political transition in order to unite and rebuild the country, and to assist Syria in implementing its reconstruction and achieving a just and inclusive political transition; remains concerned, however, by the high degree of instability, both in Syria and in the region; underlines that a stable and peaceful Syria is in the interests of the Middle East, the EU’s southern neighbourhood and the EU itself;

Removed6. Supports the Commission and the Member States in continuing to use exchanges with the interim authorities in Damascus to stress that the caretaker government and security forces need to reflect the country’s political, ethnic, religious and cultural diversity and ensure women’s participation and representation;

Added2. Welcomes the fresh start in EU-Syria relations, manifested by the appointment of an EU Chargé d’affaires in Damascus, diplomatic engagement and high-level meetings undertaken by Member States and EU leaders, as well as the anticipated organisation of the Ninth Brussels Conference set to take place on 17 March 2025; encourages the EU and all its Member States to cooperate with Syria’s interim authorities in a transparent, coordinated and responsible manner, and to convey readiness to provide state-building assistance if and as needed; welcomes dialogue held alongside regional partners in the so-called ‘Aqaba’ format;

Removed7. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to reiterate Parliament’s expectations that the interim government in Damascus uphold good governance, fundamental freedoms and human rights, without discrimination, including the freedom of movement, assembly and expression, refraining from arbitrary arrests or any other form of repression;