Most migrants to EU come from four countries: HRW
Most migrants who have reached the EU so far this year come from Afghanistan, Eritrea, Somalia and Syria
Most migrants who have reached the EU so far this year come from Afghanistan, Eritrea, Somalia and Syria, among the world’s worst affected by rights abuses and conflict, a global rights watchdog said Friday.
Others come largely from Nigeria, Gambia, Senegal and Mali, Human Rights Watch said in a report on the upsurge in migrants seeking safety in the EU, often risking life and limb in the Mediterranean in rickety boats supplied by ruthless people smugglers.
“The majority of those crossing the Mediterranean are taking terrible risks because they have to, not because they want to,” said researcher Judith Sunderland, who wrote the report.
“Saving lives and increasing safe pathways into Europe should be the EU’s priorities, while ensuring that all cooperation with countries of origin and transit countries respects international human rights standards,” Sunderland said in an HRW statement.
Some 100,000 migrants have crossed the Mediterranean so far this year, most of them landing in Italy, Greece and Malta which all want their EU peers to share more of the burden.
The sinking earlier this year of a migrant boat with the loss of an estimated 800 lives stung European Union leaders into action, prompting them to draw up plans for relocating migrants and trying to share the burden of those judged to be asylum seekers.
As well as boosting search and rescue efforts, the EU on Friday approved plans to launch as early as next week the first phase of a military operation against people smugglers, who often charge the migrants exorbitant to help them.
HRW meanwhile called on the EU to do more and “significantly increase” the number of people resettled in the EU from the 20,000 proposed by the European Commission, the 28-member bloc’s executive arm.
-
Turkey blocks Syrian refugees seeking to return to Tal Abyad
Turkey closed its border preventing Syrian refugees who had fled fighting in the town of Tal Abyad from returning home Middle East -
U.N.: Record 60 million fled ‘out of control’ violence in 2014
That is 8.3 million more refugees and internally displaced people in the world than in 2013 Middle East -
First Syrian refugees return to Tal Abyad after ISIS defeat
The first Syrian refugees returned to the border town of Tal Abyad from Turkey Wednesday Middle East -
Turkey holds reporters ‘for asking tough question’ about ISIS
The journalists were working at Turkey’s Akcakale border crossing, which saw a huge influx of refugees in the last days Middle East -
More than 23,000 refugees flee to Turkey to escape Syria fighting
Kurdish fighters were able to capture a town from ISIS Middle East -
Make a wish: Cate Blanchett visits Syrian refugee on his birthday
Hollywood star Cate Blanchett ended a trip to Lebanon with the UNHCR to visit Syrian refugee camps Variety -
‘World neglects plight of Syrian refugees’
Amnesty International report finds neighboring countries enforce 'troubling' measures to keep refugees out Middle East -
Syrian refugees fleeing Tal Abyad cross into Turkey
Dozens of Syrian refugees started passing through the Akcakale border gate onto Turkish territory as thousands more awaited their turn Middle East