Syria launches citizenship process for Kurds under new decree
Shafaq News- Al-Hasakah
Syrian authorities in Al-Hasakah province began receiving applications on Monday from Kurds seeking citizenship under Presidential Decree No. 13, with a strong turnout reported at registration centers in Hasakah, Qamishli, Derek, and Al-Darbasiyah, particularly among unregistered individuals.
The decree, issued on January 16, 2026, cancels the effects
of the 1962 census in Al-Hasakah and grants citizenship to Syrians of Kurdish
origin, including those not listed in civil records, with full rights and
obligations.
Sheron Abdi told Shafaq News, “For more than six decades, we have lived as strangers in our own country due to discriminatory measures that stripped us of our citizenship and basic rights,” adding that Kurds are reclaiming their rights and hoping their children will live with justice and equality.
According to Abdullah Abdullah, an official at the civil registry directorate, applications can be submitted individually or by families through simplified procedures, followed by interviews and verification before collective naturalization decisions are issued. He noted that authorities have opened multiple centers in Al-Hasakah, as well as in Aleppo, Damascus, and Kobani, to facilitate applications.
The decree drew mixed reactions from Kurdish actors. The Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) rejected it as insufficient, saying only a permanent constitution can guarantee Kurdish rights, while the Kurdish National Council (ENKS) welcomed it as a positive step but called for those rights to be formally secured in Syria’s future constitution.
