Turkey won't expel Syrian refugees, vows Erdogan

Tayyip Erdogan

10 May 2022; MEMO: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan pledged on Monday that his country would not force Syrian refugees to return to their country, Anadolu has reported.

"We are the children of a culture that is well aware of the meaning of immigrants and supporters," explained Erdogan in a televised speech. "Syrian refugees can return to their country whenever they want, but we will never expel them from our country."

He added that Turkey will protect up to the end the brothers who fled the war and took refuge in his country. "We will never expel them from this land. Our door is wide open to them. We will continue to host them. We will not throw them into the lap of murderers."

There are more than 3.5 million Syrian refugees in Turkey. Last year, it was reported by the World Bank that the country hosts the largest refugee population in the world.