٠٠:٠٤:٠٦The first flight carrying repatriated Iraqi migrants touched down in Erbil airport on Thursday, bringing back hundreds of migrants from Minsk and the Bruzgi-Kuznica border area between Poland and Belarus.
One of the repatriates has shed light on the situation on the Poland-Belarus border as being “catastrophic,” adding: “There are no human rights whatsoever, and the European Union has failed. If the European Union cannot protect these 4,000 migrants, how can it protect countries?”
During a press conference held at the airport, the Spokesperson of Kurdistan's Regional Government Jutiar Adel declared that 431 migrants, including families and children, had been flown back to Iraq.
Adel also noted that the registration for repatriation is proceeding, as the government “is exerting efforts to encourage the migrants stranded on the Poland-Belarus border to fly home voluntarily.”
The spokesperson dismissed that there weren’t any “political, security, or even economic" reasons that pushed the migrants to flee, attributing it to “the pursuit for a more honourable life and a livelihood that residence in Europe ensures.”
Nevertheless, the spokesperson has assured that the Regional Government had adopted “stern measures” to quell the people-smuggling operations.
The migrant crisis comes amid escalating tensions between the EU and Belarus. Brussels has accused Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko of orchestrating the migrant flow as part of a 'hybrid war' designed to put pressure on the bloc over sanctions. Minsk has denied the allegations.
Iraq: First repatriation flight from Belarus carrying migrants touches down at Erbil airport
The first flight carrying repatriated Iraqi migrants touched down in Erbil airport on Thursday, bringing back hundreds of migrants from Minsk and the Bruzgi-Kuznica border area between Poland and Belarus.
One of the repatriates has shed light on the situation on the Poland-Belarus border as being “catastrophic,” adding: “There are no human rights whatsoever, and the European Union has failed. If the European Union cannot protect these 4,000 migrants, how can it protect countries?”
During a press conference held at the airport, the Spokesperson of Kurdistan's Regional Government Jutiar Adel declared that 431 migrants, including families and children, had been flown back to Iraq.
Adel also noted that the registration for repatriation is proceeding, as the government “is exerting efforts to encourage the migrants stranded on the Poland-Belarus border to fly home voluntarily.”
The spokesperson dismissed that there weren’t any “political, security, or even economic" reasons that pushed the migrants to flee, attributing it to “the pursuit for a more honourable life and a livelihood that residence in Europe ensures.”
Nevertheless, the spokesperson has assured that the Regional Government had adopted “stern measures” to quell the people-smuggling operations.
The migrant crisis comes amid escalating tensions between the EU and Belarus. Brussels has accused Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko of orchestrating the migrant flow as part of a 'hybrid war' designed to put pressure on the bloc over sanctions. Minsk has denied the allegations.
The first flight carrying repatriated Iraqi migrants touched down in Erbil airport on Thursday, bringing back hundreds of migrants from Minsk and the Bruzgi-Kuznica border area between Poland and Belarus.
One of the repatriates has shed light on the situation on the Poland-Belarus border as being “catastrophic,” adding: “There are no human rights whatsoever, and the European Union has failed. If the European Union cannot protect these 4,000 migrants, how can it protect countries?”
During a press conference held at the airport, the Spokesperson of Kurdistan's Regional Government Jutiar Adel declared that 431 migrants, including families and children, had been flown back to Iraq.
Adel also noted that the registration for repatriation is proceeding, as the government “is exerting efforts to encourage the migrants stranded on the Poland-Belarus border to fly home voluntarily.”
The spokesperson dismissed that there weren’t any “political, security, or even economic" reasons that pushed the migrants to flee, attributing it to “the pursuit for a more honourable life and a livelihood that residence in Europe ensures.”
Nevertheless, the spokesperson has assured that the Regional Government had adopted “stern measures” to quell the people-smuggling operations.
The migrant crisis comes amid escalating tensions between the EU and Belarus. Brussels has accused Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko of orchestrating the migrant flow as part of a 'hybrid war' designed to put pressure on the bloc over sanctions. Minsk has denied the allegations.