Podcast in English
Text size
Bulgarian National Radio © 2025 All Rights Reserved

Syrian citizens protest in Sofia, demand humanitarian visas for their families

Photo: BTA

Syrian citizens protested in Sofia demanding that the issuance of humanitarian visas for their families be expedited. The protest was held in front of the building of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, reporter Dobromir Videv reported.


The consulates of Bulgaria in Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan are delaying their response on whether they would issue visas for family reunions of Syrian citizens who legally reside in Bulgaria, and often the visa is refused for unfounded reasons, said Ehsan Moazen, whose family has been waiting for approval for over half a year. According to him, the reason for the refusal is that the institutions believe that the visa will be used by the Syrians to pass through Bulgaria to another EU country, BTA reported. 

"Most of us have employment contracts, Bulgarian friends. This is enough proof for us that we have chosen to remain permanently in Bulgaria. At least until the situation in Syria calms down," Moazen pointed out. According to him, these are families of Syrians with humanitarian status in Bulgaria.


Edited by Miglena Ivanova
English: R. Petkova



Последвайте ни и в Google News Showcase, за да научите най-важното от деня!
Listen to the daily news from Bulgaria presented in "Bulgaria Today" podcast, available in Spotify.

More from category

Opposition calls for occupation of parliament

"We Continue the Change" (PP) party called for a protest and blockade of the National Assembly building to stop the adoption of the budget for next year. The MPs are discussing the budget at first reading. PP received support for..

published on 11/21/25 2:04 PM

Foreign students in Bulgaria have more than doubled for 10 years

The share of foreign students in Bulgaria has more than doubled in the last decade. In 2013, they were nearly 4 percent while in 2025 their number reaches 9% of active students. This is indicated by the annual Ranking of Higher..

published on 11/21/25 1:49 PM

Bulgaria has coordinated a major international operation against antiquities trafficking

Over 3,000 antiques worth more than EUR 100 million have been seized in an international operation, coordinated from Sofia, the Greek police reported.  One of the largest antiquities smuggling networks has been dismantled with the support of Europol..

published on 11/21/25 11:01 AM