The first stage of the exceptional operation of regularization of the situation of foreigners, conducted from January 2 through December 21, 2014, has regularized the situation of more than 5,000 Syrians, representing 23 pc of the overall number, Deputy Minister in charge of Moroccans Living abroad, Abdelkrim Benatiq, said Thursday in Rabat.
Launched on December 16, 2016, the second stage of this operation, which is a major pillar of the program "Managing Flows and Fighting Human Trafficking", has registered requests from 100 countries, including Syria, Benatiq said at a meeting with civil society organizations and associations on the situation of Syrian migrants in the Moroccan-Algerian border area.
In accordance with international law, Moroccan authorities established an ad hoc committee, under the authority of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, in charge of listening to asylum seekers, pending the establishment of a new national asylum system, he pointed out.
This commission has confirmed until January 2017, 1,089 Syrian asylum seekers in their status of persons in need of international protection, Benatiq noted.
with MAP