Military deserters and defectors

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COMMON ANALYSIS
Last update: June 2025

Military deserters and defectors had been subjected to persecution by the Assad regime (see  ‘EUAA, '4.2.3. Military deserters and defectors' in Country Guidance: Syria, April 2024’). As mentioned above, the risk related to the Assad regime has vanished.

Regarding the risk for military deserters and defectors in relation to their service in the Assad armed forces, please refer to (Former) members of Assad’s armed forces and pro-Assad armed groups.

Military deserters and defectors from the Syrian Armed Forces of the Assad regime would in general not have a well-founded fear of persecution.

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Exclusion considerations could be relevant to this profile, as members of the Syrian Armed Forces of the Assad regime may have been involved in excludable acts.

At the time of writing, there is no information available as per the treatment by the Transitional Administration of military deserters and defectors from the new Syrian military. However, the specific group to which the applicant has defected should be duly taken into consideration to assess potential international protection needs in regard of potential targeting by the Transitional Administration. Please refer to (Former) Members of anti-Assad armed groups.

For assessing international protection needs related to military service, please refer to 'EUAA jointly with Member States, Practical Guide on Political Opinion, December 2022', 3.1. Military service.

See also CJEU, Andre Lawrence Shepherd v Bundesrepublik Deutschland, C-472/13, judgment of 26 February 2015 (Shepherd)(1) and EZ v Federal Republic of Germany, represented by the Bundesamt für Migration und Flüchtlinge, C-238/19, judgment of 19 November 2020 (EZ)(2).

See other topics concerning 'Persons who evaded or deserted military service':