Syrian Citizenship Disappeared 1. Executive summary: In total, the number of stateless Syrian Kurds between 1962-2011, has reached more than 517 000. The 5th of October 2018 marks the 56th anniversary of the special census in al-Hasakah province, northeastern Syria, which is largely populated with ethnic minorities having different religious affiliations, including Assyrians, Kurds, Arabs, Armenians, Chechens and others.Al-Hasakah was the only Syrian province in which the census was conducted, in application of Decree No. 93 of 23 August 1962 passed by the so-called “Separatist Movement”, based on Decree No. 1 of 30 April 1962 and the ministerial decision, No. 106 of 23 August 1962. The now known “Al-Hasakah 1962 Census” decree states in its article 1: The IDs that ajanib al-Hasakah received were marked with placing number 8 after the registration number: to read 8/xx. «A general census is to be carried out in al-Hasakah province in one single day. The exact date will be more closely determined by an order from the Ministry of Planning, at the recommendation of the Interior Minister» STJ had access to inside information from official sources in the Personal Status Department of al-Hasakah, revealing that the number of the registered ajanib1/red card holders, reached 346 242 in early 2011. 326 489 of them managed to obtain Syrian nationality, while the rest, 19 753, are still stateless.Regarding maktumeen2, the same source denied the Syrian government’s allegations on its lack of knowledge of their numbers, noting that the Personal Status Department of al-Hasakah used to rely on the records of the makhateer3 during the previous decades, who were responsible of issuing identification certificates for the maktumeen. The number of maktumeen, has reached more than 171 300 as of 2011, 50 400 of whom obtained Syrian nationality after resolving their legal status by becoming ajanib and then Syrian citizens. However, some 41 000 maktumeen were unable to rectify their legal status owing to problems encountered by the Personal Status Separtment during the registration process, and there are still less than 5 000 people who chose not to submit. 1 Sing. ajnabi/ajnabiyah, literally »foreigners« i.e. stateless. unregistered stateless people. 2 Sing. maktum/maktumah, i.e., unregistered stateless people. 3 Sing. Mukhtar, i.e. the head of the neighborhood. Following the onset of peaceful protests in Syria, which demanded sweeping reforms in the country, Decree No. 49 was issued on 7 April 2011, and has been announced on the official website of The Syrian People’s Council under the title “Granting Syrian Arab Nationality to those Registered as ajanib in al-Hasakah”. The decree states: Article 1: individuals who are registered as ajanib in the al-Hasakah province shall be granted Syrian nationality.4 Article 2: the Minister of the Interior shall issue the decisions containing the executive instructions to this decree. Article 3: This decree shall enter into force on the day of its publication in the Official Journal. Several months after the issuance of Decree No. 49 of 2011, a ministerial decree of nationalizing maktumeen was reported. The Personal Status Department employees, however, told submitters that it was not yet in effect, and they actually didn’t know which department would take it over. Unlike citizens, Syrian Kurds, who were rendered stateless by the 1962 census, suffer deprivation of their most basic civil, political, social and economic rights. Some of them had a lifetime of statelessness, having no certificates proving their born nor death. Like other Syrians, Kurds have been subjected to serious human rights violations during the past decades, but as an ethnic minority, they suffer identity-based discrimination, such as restrictions on the use of Kurdish language and on practicing Kurdish culture. In the view of many Kurds, the Kurdish issue goes further beyond than just claiming citizenship, as it seeks the Kurds’ national, political, cultural and social rights, which are safeguarded by the international human rights instruments 4 Ajanib means foreigner in Arabic 5