Unexpectedly Sudanese Syrians: Issuing passports and the challenges of integration

Since the Syrian crisis began more than 10 years ago, over 11 million Syrians have been displaced. By 2015, Sudan hosted a large number of Syrians because it became the only country in the region that did not require visas for them, which is a result of the countries’ migration and foreign policies. For years, the more than 250,000 Syrians in Sudan were treated largely as unbothered “guests”: they were able to live, work, obtain an education, and health care on par with Sudanese without any additional permits or documentation. Most were young, educated men who came as labor migrants and to avoid military conscription in Syria. The Sudanese government further took on the unusual policy of issuing Sudanese passports to these Syrians who were otherwise unable to return, which prompted Syrians to unexpectedly envision and engender their identity as Sudanese, even letting their Syrian passports expire. After the ousting of Al Bashir in 2019, the transitional government changed the policy for Syrians and began requiring permits for residency, work, education, and access to health care. They also systematically revoked and confiscated Sudanese passports held by Syrians. This article examines the case of Syrians in Sudan whose potential durable solution of integration is being unwound by the same state that provided it. Syrians interviewed discuss the socio-political and subjective challenges experienced by this loss. The article concludes with a discussion about the unusualness of this case, especially as it relates to issuing passports with ambiguous promises of integration.