DAMASCUS, June 7 (Xinhua) -- Syria's information affairs chief Hamza al-Mustafa announced on Saturday the closure of the al-Rukban camp, a remote desert settlement near the Syrian-Jordanian border that once housed nearly 10,000 displaced persons.

"With the dismantling of al-Rukban and the return of the displaced, a tragic and painful chapter of Syria's displacement story comes to an end," al-Mustafa said in a statement posted on social media platform X.

The minister added that the closure of al-Rukban marks the beginning of a broader initiative to dismantle other displacement camps, stressing that the state remains committed to supporting the return of all internally displaced Syrians to their homes.

Al-Rukban, established in 2014 near a U.S.-controlled zone along the Jordanian border, became emblematic of Syria's humanitarian crisis. Cut off from regular humanitarian aid and surrounded by conflict zones, residents at the camp endured years of hardship, with aid groups frequently raising alarm over its deteriorating conditions. ■