Limits to the Return and Reintegration of Displaced People in Transitional Syria [bicc report]

Since the fall of the Assad regime in December 2024, more than three million displaced Syrians have returned to their areas of origin. Yet return does not necessarily mean reintegration. Drawing on fieldwork across Syria, this report examines how returnees navigate a rapidly changing political, security and economic landscape. While the end of large-scale conflict and political change have opened new possibilities, fragmented authority, economic hardship and uneven institutional trust continue to make return precarious. For many, returning is therefore not a final decision but an ongoing process of assessing whether life in Syria can be rebuilt. Sustainable return will ultimately depend on whether Syria’s transition can turn physical return into meaningful prospects for staying.