Some 509,387 Syrians returned to their country since the fall of the Bashar Assad regime last year, Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said on Monday.

Yerlikaya wrote on social media that Türkiye continues to support voluntary returns to Syria.

"Our country manages migration under the leadership of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and serves as an example to the world with its historical experience, humanitarian approach and rational perspective, Yerlikaya said, indicating that voluntary returns since 2016 have reached 1,249,390.

The minister said that the Adana Sarıçam voluntary return coordination center served as a primary hub for the safe and regulated return of Syrians.

"Syrians who choose to return willingly are experiencing both sadness and joy. We continue to carefully manage the voluntary return processes of our Syrian brothers and sisters under the coordination of our Directorate of Migration Management,” he added.

The numbers are significant as they show refugees who have called Türkiye home since the unrest began in the country’s southern neighbor more than a decade ago are eager to return home. Most refugees went on to build new lives and families expanded over time. They had little prospect of returning home as the country succumbed to further devastation due to years of conflict.

The fall of the Baathist regime last December paved the way for the return of refugees from Türkiye, which at one time hosted the largest Syrian refugee community.

The wide-scale destruction, including basic infrastructure, remains a major barrier to returns. According to the U.N. refugee agency (UNHCR), some 13.5 million Syrians remain displaced internally or abroad.

Syria's conflict displaced around half the prewar population, with many internally displaced people seeking refuge in camps in the northwest.

With the recent lifting of Western sanctions, the new Syrian authorities hope to secure international support for reconstruction, a process that the U.N. estimates could cost more than $400 billion.

Meanwhile, over 1 million Syrian refugees have returned from abroad since the fall of Assad, the U.N. said Wednesday, urging more support to allow others to follow.

"In just nine months, one million Syrians have returned to their country following the fall of the Bashar Assad government on Dec. 8, 2024," the U.N. refugee agency said in a statement.

Additionally, it stated that another 1.8 million people who had been displaced within the country during its nearly 14-year civil war had also returned to their areas of origin.

While describing the mass returns as "a sign of the great hope and high expectations Syrians have following the political transition in the country," the UNHCR warned that those returning faced "immense challenges."

"Destroyed homes and infrastructure, weak and damaged basic services, a lack of job opportunities and volatile security are challenging people's determination to return and recover," it said.

The agency added that more than 7 million Syrians remained displaced inside the country, with more than 4.5 million Syrian refugees still abroad.

"They have endured a lot of suffering in the past 14 years and the most vulnerable among them still need protection and assistance," UNHCR chief Filippo Grandi said in the statement.

UNHCR pointed to a recent survey indicating that 80% of Syrian refugees in Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt and Iraq wish to go home one day, including 18% wanting to go within the next year.

However, it emphasized that sustained return and reintegration could only occur with more targeted investments in the areas of return.

"This is a rare opportunity to resolve one of the largest displacement crises in the world," Grandi said.

Yet, the UNHCR lamented that funding to address the crisis was "dwindling."

Inside Syria, U.N. agencies have reported receiving less than a quarter of the funds needed to provide aid this year, while securing only 30% of the required funding to address the broader Syria situation.