Jordan reaffirms open-border policy on Syrians amid rumours of deportations 

(MENAFN - Jordan Times) Jordan on Tuesday reaffirmed that the northern borders remain "open" amid accusations of authorities turning back Syrians fleeing ongoing violence in their homeland.

Amman has not reversed an open-border policy that has led to the influx of some 125,000 Syrians into the Kingdom since Damascus' launch of a military crackdown on pro-democracy protesters, a senior official said.

"We have not changed our policy and there is no discussion of changing our policy; our Syrian brothers remain welcomed in Jordan," Minister of State for Media Affairs and Communications and Government Spokesperson Samih Maaytah told The Jordan Times.

Maaytah's remarks came in response to reports of security services denying entry to "tens" of Syrians at Queen Alia International Airport and claims by Syrian activists that authorities are turning back refugees in the border region.

In a statement issued on Monday, the Syrian General Revolutionary Council called on Jordan to maintain open borders, claiming that authorities have turned back dozens of refugees, including women and children, in recent weeks over "suspected political activity".

"Sadly it seems, Syrians are no longer welcome in Jordan," said the council in a statement issued on Monday.

Meanwhile, Syrian National Council representative Maamon Al Naqar issued a press statement on Monday evening claiming that Jordanian officials are taking "temporary measures" to slow the flow of Syrian refugees into the Kingdom due to emerging security concerns.

Maaytah stressed that the refusal of entry, which Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh stressed in a press conference last week was based on security concerns, were "individual cases" and do not represent an official policy.

"These individuals either had legal cases against them or presented potential security threats; airport officials dealt with them as they would with any other nationality," Maaytah said.

Maaytah refuted rumours of official attempts to limit the flow of Syrian refugees, highlighting interior ministry statistics indicating that the number of Syrian refugees continues to rise.

A UN official confirmed that Jordan has not backtracked from its open border policy, reporting that the influx of Syrians into Jordan is remaining "stable" at some 100-300 persons per day.

Syrian activists accuse Jordan of implementing a new policy barring the entry of Syrians via third party countries due to difficulties in screening new arrivals amid fears of the entry of regime agents or wealthy opposition activists looking to fund or carry out political activity on Jordanian soil.

"It is easy to track someone who has been wandering the border region for days," said Abu Alaa, an activists from the so-called Local Coordination Committees currently receiving medical treatment in the Kingdom.

"It's much harder when someone just walks off the plane from Algeria or Turkey."

Meanwhile, displaced Syrians accused Jordan of deporting "several" opposition activists in recent weeks in order to defuse growing tensions between Amman and Damascus.

"The regime is beginning to accuse Jordan of aiding the revolution, and Jordan is sending back revolutionaries to appease them," claimed Ahmed, a 22-year-old Syrian revolutionary who refused to use his real name.

Both the government and security sources denied any deportations in recent weeks, claims which could not be independently verified.

Jordan's open-border policy has allowed the entry of civilians, political activists and army defectors, both legally and illegally, with authorities providing Syrians with refuge and emergency medical care.

Despite several recent statements by Jordanian officials underlining the financial burden the growing refugee population is placing on the Kingdom, there has been no public discussion on reversing the policy.