A 26-year-old Kurdish Syrian asylum seeker faces deportation to Syria after being returned to France under Britain's "one in, one out" migration deal. French authorities determined it was safe to send him back to his home country, marking the first known case of its kind under the controversial scheme.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron announced the arrangement in July 2025 to deter small-boat crossings of the English Channel. The policy requires Britain to forcibly return one asylum seeker to France for every person who successfully reaches UK shores by boat.
The man fled Syria to escape forced conscription by the YPG militia, a Kurdish military group. He stated he refused to participate in combat because he did not want to kill people. His case highlights a critical tension in the agreement: France's assessment that Syria is safe for return contradicts assessments from human rights organizations and many Western governments about conditions for vulnerable populations there.
The scheme has drawn criticism from refugee advocates who argue it violates international asylum protections. They contend that returning people to countries where they face persecution or violence breaches the principle of non-refoulement, a cornerstone of international refugee law that prohibits sending people to places where they face danger.