MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 19th January, 2020) Nearly 1,000 Syrian refugees have returned home from Lebanon and Jordan in the past 24 hours, the Russian Defense Ministry's Center for Reconciliation of Opposing Sides and Refugee Migration Monitoring said on Sunday.
"Over the past day, a total of 995 refugees have returned to the Syrian Arab Republic from foreign territories: 288 people (including 87 women and 147 children) came from Lebanon via the Jdeydet-Yabus and Talkalakh checkpoints, and 707 people (including 212 women and 361 children) from Jordan via the Nasib checkpoint," the center said in its daily bulletin.
The center added that Syrian Armed Forces engineers carried out mine clearing tasks in Damascus and Zimrin (Daraa province) during the course of the previous 24 hours. Syrian army engineering units have cleared 2.4 hectares (5.9 acres) of territory and dismantled 33 explosive devices over the past day.
Since 2011, Syria has suffered an armed conflict between various opposition groups, including terrorist organizations, and the government led by President Bashar Assad. Since government forces have regained control over most of the country from terrorists, the priority is now being given to reaching a political settlement and facilitating the return of refugees.
