Over 52,000 Syrians crossed from Jordan to Syria since ouster of Assad regime

The Jordanian Interior Ministry said Saturday that 52,406 Syrians have returned home since the ouster of Bashar al-Assad from power in Syria on Dec. 8.

Jordan's official Al-Mamlaka TV quoted a statement by the Interior Ministry as saying that the returnees crossed from Jordan into Syria through the Jaber-Nassib border crossing, which has been open since Dec. 8.

It added that a total of 11,315 registered Syrian refugees in Jordan also crossed the border, while the other returnees were non-refugee Syrians, including those who came from outside Jordan to cross into Syria.

Jordan, which hosts 1.3 million Syrians, is one of the most affected countries by the conflict in Syria.

Nearly half of the Syrian population in Jordan are registered as refugees, while the rest entered the country before the start of the conflict in 2011, through family ties, marriages, or business connections.

Jordan and Syria share two main border crossings. The Al-Gomruk Al-Qadim crossing, known as Ramtha on the Jordanian side, has been out of operation for years due to the Syrian conflict. The other is the Nassib-Jaber crossing.

Bashar Assad, Syria's leader for nearly 25 years, fled to Russia after anti-regime groups took control of Damascus on Dec. 8, ending the Baath Party regime, which had been in power since 1963.