The Syrian Embassy in Saudi Arabia has suspended services to its citizens, several Syrian expats told Arab News.
The embassy in Riyadh has asked its nationals to complete any pending legal procedures before March 20. The embassy also announced on its website that it would cancel some appointments and suspend electronic services.
There has been no official confirmation despite the fact that some websites have already reported the decision to close the embassy at the end of the month.
As such, Syrian citizens will not be able to renew their civil status documents until further notice.
According to a Syrian website, Syria’s embassies will soon be shut down in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the United States.
The decision is poised to create problems for the large number of Syrian expatriates who wish to renew their passports but who will no longer have legal representatives in the countries they reside in.
“This decision was expected,” said Thamer Ashlash, a Syrian living in Jeddah. “Most governments don’t recognize the Syrian regime, so Syrians living abroad will encounter problems renewing their passports at local embassies. This lack of recognition has now become official.”
Agence France Presse quoted a diplomatic source saying that some Gulf countries have refused to acknowledge diplomats sent from Damascus since the beginning of the Syrian crisis.
There are around one million Syrians living and working in the Kingdom in the fields of administration, medicine and engineering.
More than 100,000 Syrians have been barred entry into their home country by the Syrian regime.
“About 10 percent of Syrian expats who hold political views that go against the Syrian regime have been blocked from renewing their passports or legalizing their residency status during the Kingdom’s amnesty period,” said Mohammed Al-Turkawi, a member of the Syrian opposition living in Jeddah. “Syrians have to go to neighboring countries to renew their passports. The Syrian mission in the Kingdom had even resorted to withdrawing the passports of citizens who are members of the opposition.”
Syrians in trouble as embassy halts work
