Syrian refugees must buy travel papers - from Assad

From L-R, Syrian family Maya, Mohamed, Ghufran and Shadin al-Khalaf are seen near their apartment in Wecker, Luxembourg, January 19, 2017. REUTERS/Yves Herman

LUXEMBOURG (Reuters) - When Mohamed al-Khalaf escaped from Syria and won asylum in Luxembourg last year, his wife and children stayed behind in Raqqa, the hub of Islamic State's so-called Caliphate. Khalaf applied for his family to join him, exercising a right to family life under European law.

But first, Luxembourg officials said, they must see the family's passports and a document, certified by President Bashar al-Assad's administration, to prove Khalaf's wife Ghufran did not have a criminal record.