Pages and accounts on social media circulated a report about an official circular granting passports to people who previously performed compulsory service in the Defense and Interior ministries under the former regime, provided their records are free of any legal action registered on the computer system.
The fact-checking team contacted an official source at the Immigration and Passports Department, who confirmed the report and explained that the decision excludes from the grant anyone proven to have committed violations against Syrian citizens.
Background to the decision
The same source indicated that the measure comes as part of efforts to curb passport forgery, which reflects negatively on the value of the Syrian passport and on its international ranking.
