Nigel Farage has warned the eruption of a new phase in Syria's civil war could trigger a fresh wave of refugees and urged the government to pull out of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) to allow migrant deportations.
The Reform UK leader told The Telegraph yesterday: 'We must protect ourselves from the stupidity of the EU and leave the ECHR or face yet more waves of young men coming to the UK.'
His warning came shortly afterPeter Ford, Britain's former ambassador to Syria, told LBC that the rebel uprising against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime could lead to a 'flood' of refugees headed for Europe.
Islamist-led rebel groups burst out of their stronghold in the northwestern Syrian province of Idlib last week and surged into the neighbouring regions of Aleppo and Hama, taking Assad's forces by surprise.
Farage claims the UK's adherence to the ECHR prevents Westminster from combatting immigration because migrants can challenge their removal from the UK at the European Court of Human Rights.
But experts say this is not necessarily the case, pointing out that the court can only step in under very specific circumstances.
'The European Court of Human Rights can block deportations only in cases where there is evidence that a person can suffer very serious harm by being returned to a third country,' Ilias Trispiotis, professor of human rights law at the University of Leeds, told EuroNews and EuroVerify.
'Even if the UK decided to withdraw from the ECHR, state authorities would still not be able to deport any migrants they want to third countries because of other international law, treaties and obligations outside the ECHR,' Trispiotis said.
Leader of Reform UK, Nigel Farage is seen while attending a Reform UK press conference on November 28, 2024
Displaced Syrian Kurds ride vehicles loaded with belongings on the Aleppo-Raqqa highway as they flee areas on the outskirts of the northern city of Aleppo which were formerly controlled by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), after they were seized by Islamist-led rebels on December 2, 2024
Displaced Syrians are seen fleeing Aleppo as fighting rages between rebel and government forces
Syrian government forces loyal to Assad were caught off guard, retreating hastily and abandoning stockpiles of Russian and Iranian-supplied military hardware eagerly seized by the advancing rebels.
Some say the fresh offensive is a sharp but short-lived uprising that Assad's forces, with backing from his Russian and Iranian allies, will crush swiftly.
But many others believe this could prove a new chapter in Syria's torrid history that could finally see Assad's reign brought to a violent conclusion some 13 years after the first uprisings that triggered civil war.
That scenario could see Syria descend even further into chaos with rival factions, regional powers, and global players like Russiaand the US vying for influence - while the nation's long-suffering civilians carry the cost.
Syria has been at war since President Assad cracked down on pro-democracy protests in 2011, with subsequent fighting that has involved foreign powers and jihadists leaving an estimated half a million people dead.
In addition to the shocking death toll, figures revealed earlier this year by the UN's refugee agency (UNHCR) revealed thatmore than 14 million Syrians have been forced to flee their homes in search of safety since the conflict erupted and triggered one of the world's worst humanitarian crises.
More than 7.2 million Syrians remain internally displaced in their own country, and approximately 5.5 million Syrian refugees are living in the five countries neighbouring Syria - Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Egypt.
Germany is the largest non-neighbouring host country with more than 850,000 Syrian refugees thanks largely to former Chancellor Angela Merkel's decision to pursue an 'open-border' migration policy in 2015 that is now a highly divisive topic in German politics.
Germany earlier this year introduced strict border controls in an effort to reduce unchecked illegal immigration.
By comparison, between 2014 and June 2024, around 59,000 asylum seekers were resettled or relocated to the UK through various schemes. Around 20,000 of these were Syrians resettled between 2014 and 2020, according to UK Parliament figures.
Farage claims the UK's adherence to the ECHR prevents Westminster from combatting immigration because migrants can challenge their removal from the UK at the European Court of Human Rights - but legal experts have disputed his argument
Soldiers of Syrian National Army (SNA) is continuing its advance in the Tel Rifaat district
Smoke rises after the airstrikes by warplanes of the Assad regime and Russian forces on Idlib province, Syria
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Monday he was 'alarmed' by the escalation of violence in Syria and called for an immediate end to fighting that his organisation says has displaced nearly 50,000 people in less than a week.
'All parties must do their utmost to protect civilians and civilian objects, including by allowing safe passage to civilians who are fleeing hostilities,' Guterres's spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in a statement.
'Syrians have endured the conflict for nearly 14 years. They deserve a political horizon that will deliver a peaceful future, not more bloodshed,' he added.
The conflict had been mostly dormant with Assad back in control of much of the country until Wednesday, when a rebel alliance led by Islamist armed groups began its offensive.
Syria's military and its ally Russia have responded with deadly air raids on areas under rebel control.
The fighting has killed more than 457 people, including at least 72 civilians, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
As of November 30, more than 48,500 people had been displaced in Idlib and northern Aleppo, more than half of them children, the UN's humanitarian agency OCHA said on Monday, adding that the situation was highly fluid.
'Tens of thousands of people on the move; critical services interrupted; women, men and children fearing for safety,' OCHA chief Tom Fletcher said on X, describing the situation as 'worrying.'
'Syrians have already endured over 13 years of suffering. All sides must do more to protect civilians.'
The number of displaced was a steep increase from the 14,000 people reported on 28 November.
And according to Dujarric, UN peacekeeping operations in the country have been 'largely suspended' across Aleppo, Idlib and Hama due to security concerns.
