Via Aljazeera – Closed borders, racism, xenophobic attacks, rejected asylum applications, poverty and lengthy waits. These experiences are what many refugees and migrants in Greece say defined 2017 for them. More than 60,000 refugees and migrants are trapped in Greece due to sealed borders across the so-called Balkan route and the March 2016 deal between Turkey and the European Union, which was sculpted to stem the flow of displaced people to Europe. 
Continue reading Refugees in Greece reflect on another year of waiting
Monthly Archives: January 2018
50.000 irregular immigrants arrest in Edirne in 2017
Via Hürriyet (Link in Turkish) – A total of 50,000 migrants were caught while trying to cross to Greece or Bulgaria in Edirne throught the last year. Compared to the number of migrants caught in 2016 (31,000), the number of arrests increased by 19%. Among the arrested were around 15,000 Pakistanis, 12,000 Afghans and 10,000 Syrians. The number of Syrian refugees fleeing the war in their countries fell from 16,000 to 10,000 from 2016 to 2017. Further migrants from Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, Iraq and Iran had been arrested throughtout 2017. Continue reading 50.000 irregular immigrants arrest in Edirne in 2017
Social Cohesion in Turkey: Refugee and Host Community Online Survey
Via World Food Programme – The current social cohesion perception survey takes place within the monitoring framework of the Emergency Social Safety Net (ESSN) programme. The Turkish name for the ESSN programme is Sosyal Uyum Yardimi programi; the literal English translation is Social Cohesion Assistance programme. This Turkish name underlines the idea that providing basic needs assistance to refugees is intended to support the social cohesion of refugees within Turkish communities. Continue reading Social Cohesion in Turkey: Refugee and Host Community Online Survey
Turkish Coast Guard: Migrant deaths in Aegean down 85 percent in 2017
Via Hurriyet Daily News – Migrant deaths in the Aegean Sea plummeted by 85 percent in 2017 compared to 2016, according to Turkey’s Coast Guard Command. A total of 61 people lost their lives trying to cross the Aegean in 2017, down from 434 people in 2016 and 806 people in 2015, state-run Anadolu Agency reported. Continue reading Turkish Coast Guard: Migrant deaths in Aegean down 85 percent in 2017
Over 1,600 undocumented migrants detained across Turkey
Via Hürriyet Daily News- A total of 1,632 undocumented migrants were detained across Turkey on Jan. 2, according to military figures.
Border troops detained a total of 1,556 migrants from Syria trying to illegally cross into Turkey, as well as five from Greece and two from Iran, according to the Turkish General Staff website. Turkey has been a main route for refugees trying to cross into Europe since the Syrian civil war begun.
Sixty-four migrants were also caught while trying to illegally enter Greece from Turkey, while five others were held at the Syrian border attempting to enter Syria.
‘Flying Library’ project brings together Syrian, local children in Istanbul
Via Hürriyet Daily News – A mobile library with aims to bring local and refugee children together has been receiving great interest at its second stop in Istanbul, in the district of Avcılar.
Here children can come and learn about Turkish, Syrian and world literatures thanks to a partnership between the Goethe Institute, Yuva Association, and Solidarity for Refugees Association. Continue reading ‘Flying Library’ project brings together Syrian, local children in Istanbul