Germany closed its Damascus embassy and stopped its recognition of Bashar al-Assad in 2012 because of the Syrian civil war, but did not cut relations with the former Ba'athist regime until its official collapse in late 2024.

During Second World War, Syria was briefly under control of the German-dependent Vichy regime, but was captured by British and anti-German French forces in 1941 in the Syria–Lebanon campaign.

[9] In January 2022, a German court in Koblenz sentenced Syrian officer Anwar Raslan to life imprisonment, declaring him guilty over crimes against humanity.

Anwar Raslan had served as a colonel under the notorious Branch 251 of Ba'athist General Intelligence Directorate and was charged with organizing large-scale torture, rape, sexual violence against detainees and in the killing of 58 individuals.

[13] When the Assad regime collapsed in December 2024, Germany, along with a number of European states, had suspended asylum applications for Syrian migrants.

[15] Germany's Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said that Bashar al-Assad "must finally be held accountable" for his atrocities against the Syrian people.

[20] On January 12, Baerbock pledged €50 million in food, emergency shelters, and medical care to Syria following talks with the Syrian Transitional Government in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

[24] Well-known German-Syrians include political scientist Bassam Tibi, politician Lamya Kaddor and football player Mahmoud Dahoud.

[27] Since the beginning of the Syrian civil war, Germany has provided humanitarian aid amounting to more than 10 billion euros up to 2022, making it one of the leading donor countries.

The German government has worked with partners such as the United Nations World Food Programme, the Red Cross, and Save the Children.