European countries are freezing asylum cases from Syrian migrants after the ouster of Syrian President Bashar Assad, raising questions about how the U.S. will handle claims.

By Karolina Tagaris, Edward McAllister, Riham Alkousaa ATHENS/BERLIN (Reuters) -Najem al-Moussa was delighted when news of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's overthrow first beamed from the television in his tiny Athens apartment.

Some European Union countries are doubling down on their decision to rapidly halt asylum procedures for Syrian migrants in Europe.

Nearly a million Syrians in Germany alone have made new lives. But after the fall of Bashar al-Assad, some politicians across the continent have suggested that refugees could return home.

As Syria enters the post-Assad era, EU policymakers need to learn from their failed approach to the country's civil war. The post Europe Needs to Update Its Thinking for a Post-Assad Syria appeared first on World Politics Review.

Several countries, including France and Germany, have announced that they are suspending decisions on asylum applications from Syria. Far-right parties, meanwhile, have re-opened a political and legal debate on refugee deportation.

European countries put asylum applications from Syrians on hold until further notice on Monday after rebels seized the Syrian capital and President Bashar al-Assad fled to Russia following 13 years of civil war.

German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser called on Thursday for a joint European approach to the possible return of Syrian refugees. "I believe it would be very expedient to organize this together," Faeser said,