Immigration
Migrant crossings surge during coronavirus lockdown (LINK ONLY)
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Refugees
Immigration
‘I’m going to jump’: Tensions on Ocean Viking migrant rescue ship
(AFP) The young Sudanese man cast off his T-shirt and cried desperately out to sea: “I swear to you, I’m going to jump. I don’t know how to swim but I can’t stay here anymore!” After just over a week at sea, […]
Government & Politics
U.N. agency urges Hungary to repeal tightened asylum rules
(Reuters) The United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR) has called on Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s government to repeal a tightening of the Hungarian asylum system, provisions of which it says could violate international laws. Hungary shut so-called migrant transit zones on its borders […]
Crime
Arrests after five migrants found on fishing boat
(BBC) Four men have been arrested during a people smuggling investigation after five migrants were found on board a fishing boat in France. The five, thought to be Albanian, were found on the boat as it was about to leave Cherbourg on […]
Crime
Police name man shot dead by officers after Glasgow knife attack (LINK ONLY)
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Immigration
Kent: Five migrant boats intercepted in Channel
(BBC) Five boats carrying 62 suspected migrants have been intercepted off the Kent coast. Border Force officials … were alerted to the first craft in the Channel at about 05:30 BST, the Home Office said. Those on board have been handed over […]
Government & Politics
Parliament votes against lifting MP’s immunity from hate speech prosecution The Finns Party [MP] described asylum seekers as an 'invasive species.'
(Yle) Finns Party MP Juha Mäenpää will not be prosecuted for inciting ethnic hatred after a vote in parliament on lifting his immunity as a legislator fell short of the required five-sixths majority. The proposal to lift his immunity was supported by […]
Government & Politics
Greek, Turkish leaders speak after months of tension
(AP) The leaders of Greece and Turkey spoke by phone Friday, the prime minister’s office says, after months of increasing tension between the two countries. Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan focused on the consequences of the […]
Government & Politics
Hungary worries virus could spur more migration to Europe
(AP) The Hungarian government is “very concerned” that the coronavirus pandemic will trigger more waves of migrants trying to reach Europe from poorer nations where the disease will have a greater impact, the country’s foreign minister said Friday. Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter […]
Immigration
Migrants detained after landing on Kent beaches
(BBC) More than 20 migrants have been detained after landing in two boats on Kent beaches, the Home Office says. Another boat was also intercepted on Thursday in the Channel, with 13 men and one woman on board saying they were Syrian […]
Government & Politics
Rights of asylum seekers trampled in Hungary, EU judge observes
(Courthouse News) An EU magistrate condemned Hungary’s refugee policies Thursday, detailing a system where immigrants are made to sleep in shipping containers on the border for months while seeking asylum. Under the EU’s Reception Conditions Directive, people claiming asylum must have access […]
Immigration
Six migrant boats intercepted off Kent coast
(BBC) Six boats carrying 82 migrants have been intercepted by Border Force vessels off the Kent coast. The first boats were spotted at about 06:30 BST on Wednesday, the Home Office said. Three women were among those onboard the small boats crossing […]
Immigration
Political stagnation and virus galvanise Maghreb migrants
(AFP) “Here, I don’t exist — I die little by little,” said Hamid, a young Algerian, his gaze fixed on Mediterranean waters he sees as his route to a better future. “My only hope is to leave for Europe.” Like thousands of […]
Academics & Education
Edmonton school trustee resigns over comments about refugee students Cheryl Johner's comments 'unacceptable, racist and wrong,' board chair says
(CBC) Edmonton public school trustee Cheryl Johner has resigned from the board, less than a day after making comments about refugee students during a debate on police officers in schools. “My comments were inappropriate and immediately regrettable,” Johner, trustee for Ward A […]
Government & Politics
EU says engagement needed to build trust with Turkey after migration dispute
(Reuters) The European Union wants to rebuild trust with Turkey, its top diplomat said on Wednesday, after a standoff in March in which thousands of migrants attempted to force their way into Greece, triggering clashes on their border. Before the coronavirus pandemic […]
Health & Medicine
Reading terror suspect was classified as ‘high mental health risk’ amid fears he was not getting help he needed (LINK ONLY)
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Children & Teens
Cyprus probes alleged groping of girls at migrant center
(AP) Cyprus’ interior minister said Tuesday that he asked police to launch a criminal investigation into allegations that girls staying at a migrants’ reception center were sexually harassed by other residents. Interior Minister Nicos Nouris told state broadcaster CyBC that he takes […]
Immigration
Channel migrants: Border Force intercepts 28 people
(BBC) Twenty-eight migrants in dinghies and a kayak have been intercepted in the Channel. The Border Force found the people in three vessels between 07:40 and 11:30 BST on Sunday. There were 24 males and four females, but the Home Office no […]
Government & Politics
Greece extends lockdown at migrant camps on World Refugee Day
(AFP) Greece announced on Saturday another extension of the coronavirus lockdown on its teeming migrant camps, hours after some 2,000 people protested in central Athens to mark World Refugee Day and denounce the government’s treatment of migrants. The migration ministry said confinement […]
Immigration
Migrant boat intercepted off Kent coast
(BBC) A boat carrying three migrants has been intercepted off the Kent coast. The Home Office said Border Force sent a vessel into the Channel at Dover at about 11:00 BST. Three men who presented themselves as Iraqi, Kuwaiti and Libyan nationals […]
Government & Politics
Greece culls migrant support groups in ‘transparency’ overhaul
(AFP) Dozens of groups helping asylum seekers in Greece risk being edged out in a government move to tighten what it calls “opaque” rules overseeing charities, sparking concern that crucial support will be cut. Critics warn that the new registration regulations will […]
Immigration
Terrorism suspect arrested in Dutch refugee center
(NL Times) Police in the Netherlands arrested a 24-year-old Syrian man on Tuesday at a reception center for people seeking asylum in the country. The man was accused of involvement in a terrorist organization, and was taken into custody in Balk, a […]
Immigration
Channel migrants: 41 intercepted by Border Force
(BBC) More than 40 migrants were intercepted while attempting to [cross] the English Channel earlier. The Home Office said three boats were found in separate incidents, with 36 men and 5 women brought to Dover. A spokeswoman said: “These attempted crossings are […]
Government & Politics
Cyprus says common EU migration deal ‘imperative’
(AP) The European Union must forge a common migration policy that obligates member states to take in a proportional number of asylum-seekers and restricts EU funding access to any country that refuses, Cyprus’ interior minister said Thursday. Nicos Nouris said it’s “imperative” […]
Government & Politics
EU slams Bosnia over its treatment of migrants
(AP) The European Union has threatened to reconsider helping Bosnia to provide for thousands of migrants stuck in its territory over the Balkan country’s failure to take responsibility of the already established EU-funded reception centers. The warning has been delivered … in […]
Immigration
Channel migrants: Border Force and RNLI intercept boats
(BBC) More than 30 migrants have been brought ashore at Dover after Border Force vessels intercepted three small boats in the Channel. The Home Office said the alerts came in the early hours between 04:50 BST and about 06:15 BST. Thirty-four men […]
Immigration
Channel migrants try to cross English Channel in fog
(BBC) Migrants have tried to cross the Channel to the UK amid thick fog over the Kent coast. Border Force teams were seen earlier with a group of people thought to have attempted the crossing, and officials were spotted towing a rowing […]
Immigration
Channel migrants: Border Force intercept five boats
(BBC) Five boats carrying migrants have been intercepted by Border Force vessels in the English Channel. The Home Office said 49 men and women were brought to Dover and transferred to immigration officials. The attempted crossings started at about 06:25 BST and […]
Immigration
Migrant crossings into Europe spiked in May: report The number of migrants seeking to enter the EU tripled in May compared to the previous month. It's a sign traffic along Europe's migration routes is picking up again after a lull brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.
(Deutsche Welle) European border agency Frontex recorded a sharp increase in migrants hoping to enter the EU last month, German media reported Sunday. The spike comes after coronavirus lockdowns and widespread border closures cut the number of potential asylum-seekers able to reach […]
Crime
Knife crime looms larger than virus in Greek refugee camp
(AFP) Inside Greece’s largest asylum-seeker camp on the island of Lesbos, the coronavirus is an oft-heard threat that has kept migrant facilities around the country under lockdown since March. But knife crime is the real killer. Whereas COVID-19 has yet to surface […]
Immigration
Channel migrants: Windsurfing boards used as makeshift raft
(BBC) Four migrants have tried to cross the English Channel on a makeshift raft made from two windsurfing boards tied together, and using shovels as paddles. They were spotted in difficulty by a DFDS ferry off Calais at about 06:25 local time, […]
Government & Politics
Applications for asylum in EU plummet during pandemic
(Reuters) Asylum applications in Europe fell to the lowest level in April for over a decade as borders closed to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, European Union figures show, compounding the challenges of people fleeing conflict and persecution. The number of […]
Government & Politics
Border Force staff ‘will face violence’ when fingerprinting migrants
(BBC) UK Border Force officers will face violent attacks after the government told them to take the fingerprints of migrants who try to board Eurotunnel trains, a trade union has said. The Home Office order was made to staff at the terminal […]
Government & Politics
Stranded migrants grabbed knives, threatened to blow up gas cylinder — Abela 'They gave me 30 minutes or else they would kidnap the crew'
(Times of Malta) Migrants on board a government-chartered tourist boat off Malta occupied the kitchen, grabbed knives and threatened to blow up a gas cylinder and burn rubbish, Prime Minister Robert Abela said on Sunday. “They gave us half an hour to […]
Government & Politics
Migrants allowed to disembark from tourist boats amid takeover fears Government 'not willing to endanger lives of crew' after 'commotion' on board
(Times of Malta) Some 425 migrants who were being held offshore on four tourist boats were finally allowed to disembark on Saturday-Sunday night amid fears of a takeover on one of them. Some of the migrants had been held at sea for […]
Government & Politics
Europe rights body urges Malta to stop keeping rescued migrants offshore
(Reuters) Europe’s leading human rights body urged Malta on Thursday to allow disembarkation of more than 400 migrants being held on four former tour group boats just outside the Mediterranean island’s territorial waters. Some of the migrants have been held at sea […]
Immigration
Migrant crossings hit single day record
(BBC) More than 160 migrants travelled across the Channel in small boats in 24 hours — a record for a single day. The Border Force intercepted seven boats on Wednesday, while 11 men were detained on a beach at Samphire Hoe in […]
Government & Politics
Rescued migrants stranded on chartered Maltese tourist boats
(AP) More than 400 migrants are living aboard pleasure cruise vessels bobbing in the sea off Malta, many of them for weeks now. But for them, it’s no pleasure, only uncertainty over their fate and they aren’t cruising anywhere. Rescued from human […]
Government & Politics
Tents and razor wire: Cyprus struggles with migrant influx
(AFP) In the thick of the coronavirus lockdown in Cyprus, authorities gave a group of asylum seekers a stark choice: move to an overcrowded camp or go home. The Mediterranean island deemed it a necessary step to save money — the tiny […]
Government & Politics
Thousands face homelessness in Greek refugee relocation push
(AFP) Abdelkader Rahmoun hasn’t slept in days. The 44-year-old Syrian and his family are among thousands of recognised refugees about to lose the temporary homes they were given under Greece’s asylum seeker housing scheme. On Monday the first departures began, with dozens […]
Government & Politics
Cyprus to launch SMS campaign to stem migrant arrivals
(AP) Cyprus is launching a multilingual SMS campaign to head off more migrant arrivals by dispelling the mistaken belief the European Union member country is a gateway to the continent, the Cypriot interior minister said Sunday. Nicos Nouris told the Associated Press […]
Government & Politics
Inquiry into migrant deaths clears prime minister of homicide claims
(Times of Malta) A magisterial inquiry into whether the prime minister, the brigadier, and the crew of an Armed Forces of Malta patrol boat were responsible for the deaths of at least five migrants at sea has cleared them of homicide. The […]
Government & Politics
Iranians and Iraqis dominate attempts to enter UK via perilous cross-Channel route
(Forbes) Iranian and Iraqi nationals accounted for almost all the migrants intercepted while trying to cross the English Channel to enter the UK in the first three months of this year, according to statistics from the UK government. In a written answer […]
Immigration
People smugglers exploit legal loophole as French Navy escorts them into British waters (LINK ONLY)
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Immigration
Channel migrants: Boats carrying 60 people intercepted
(BBC) Four boats carrying 60 migrants have been intercepted off the Kent coast. The Home Office said 57 men and three women had crossed the English Channel on Wednesday in small boats. A spokesman said they were alerted to the first incident […]
Government & Politics
Priti Patel wants new powers to curb illegal migrants sneaking into UK (LINK ONLY)
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Immigration
Channel migrants: Boats and kayak carrying 80 people intercepted
(BBC) Six boats and a kayak carrying 80 migrants have been intercepted off the Kent coast. The Home Office said 65 men and 15 women had crossed the English Channel on Tuesday in small boats. A spokesman said the migrants travelled from […]
Government & Politics
Italy Senate panel votes down Salvini probe over stranded migrants
(Reuters) An Italian Senate committee on Tuesday rejected a request by magistrates to investigate Matteo Salvini, head of the rightwing League party, for refusing a migrant rescue boat permission to land last year when he was interior minister. Salvini refused to allow […]
Health & Medicine
Wave of migration strains Spain’s Canary Islands amid pandemic
(Reuters) About 80 African migrants packed aboard two fishing boats landed on the Spanish island of Gran Canaria on Tuesday, adding to the hundreds of new arrivals now stuck there while the coronavirus lockdown prevents transfers to the mainland. The first boat […]
Government & Politics
Home Office approaches Australian Border Force chief who helped mastermind return of sea migrants (LINK ONLY)
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