Report: Syria changes civil registry terminology for descendants of Palestinian refugees in the country

By Nurit Yohanan

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11 July 2025, 7:32 am

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Nurit Yohanan is The Times of Israel's Palestinian and Arab world correspondent

Men check a motorbike next to a mural painting bearing an image of the Syrian and Palestinian flags with a key symbolising a lost Palestinian home in what is now Israel, in the Yarmuk camp for Palestinian refugees in southern Damascus on May 22, 2025. (Louai Beshara/AFP)

The Syrian newspaper Zaman al-Wasl reports that Syria’s civil registry has begun altering the official documentation of Palestinians residing in the country—apparently referring to the descendants of Palestinian refugees who fled or were expelled from Israel in 1948.

According to the report, the term “Syrian Palestinian,” which had been used for decades, has been replaced with “Palestinian resident.”

Additionally, instead of indicating which Syrian province the person resides in, as was previously the case, the designation now reads “foreigner.”

The rationale behind the change remains unclear.