Via Bianet – A group attacked the shops of Syrians in Konya with rocks and sticks. One Syrian was injured.
Some shops in Şems Tebrizi neighbourhood in Karatay, Konya that are managed by people from Syrian, were exposed to an attack. The assailant group escaped after the attack. Continue reading Attack on Shops of Syrians in Konya
Event Announcement – Rejections and Returns: The EU-Turkey Statement and its consequences for refugees in Greece, Turkey and Germany
Monday, 20 November, 19:00 – 21:00
ECCHR, Zossener Straße 55-58 (Aufgang D), 10961 Berlin
The EU-Turkey Statement from March 2016 stipulates that “[a]ll new irregular migrants crossing from Turkey into Greek islands as from 20 March 2016 will be returned to Turkey”. Under the adjusted procedures, people who arrive on the Greek islands are subjected to accelerated border procedures and an initial admissibility test on their asylum claim. The European Asylum Support Office (EASO), an EU agency, is in charge of “recommending” a decision to the competent Greek Asylum Service. Based on the dubious assumption that Turkey is a safe third country, many refugees currently face the risk of being deported back there. Cases against this further erosion of the right to asylum are pending at the European Court of Human Rights. At the same time, EASO’s practice is under scrutiny by the European Ombudsman, due to a complaint lodged by ECCHR. Continue reading Rejections and Returns: The EU-Turkey Statement and its consequences for refugees in Greece, Turkey and Germany
Via Greek Reporter – At least three people were killed when a boat carrying migrants and refugees to Greece from Turkey capsized in the early hours of Friday. The incident happened at Kalolimnos islet in the Dodecanese, just opposite the Turkish coast.
The Greek coastguard that rushed to the scene discovered the body of one woman. Later, two more bodies were recovered inside Turkey’s territorial waters by the Turkish coastguard. Continue reading Three Killed, Several Missing as Migrant Boat Sinks in Eastern Aegean
Turkeys state-run news agency Anadolu Agency reports that a total of 504 foreign nationals have been taken into custody in Turkey either for being illegally in the country or attempting to travel illegally to European countries. Continue reading AA: 504 refugees, migrants held in Turkey operations
The Italian research institute “Istituto Affari Internazionali” published a paper in January on the paradox in EU-Turkish relations regarding their migration cooperation:
“Since the beginning of the Arab uprisings in 2011 and as a result of growing instability in the region, migration transit through Turkey has become an increasingly pressing issue in Europe. The transit of migrants placed Turkey in a buffer position between the Middle East and Europe, and it soon assumed the role of guardian of the Schengen area, “protecting” it from irregular migration. This, combined with the exponential growth of irregular migration flows – soon dubbed the “migrant crisis” – resulted in migration management becoming a key to the ostensible rapprochement between Turkey and the EU. However, as a result of many paradoxes, migration can also hamper Turkey-EU relations, as is already becoming obvious as relations took a turn for the worse since the summer of 2016.”
Via Bordermonitoring Bulgaria – Yesterday, on the 20th of October 2017 the Defence Minister of Bulgaria Krassimir Karakachanov stated that ladders had been used to climb the fence at the Bulgarian-Turkish border. On the same day the minister said to BGNews that the fence is 100% finished and has to be “upgraded with relevant sensors [and] cameras“. Days before, photos were circulating in the Bulgarian media showing a large hole underneath the fence, which were leading to a bigger discussion in the Bulgarian parliament and the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) has called for the resignation of the Deputy Prime Minister Valeri Simeonov. Since 2016, the Bulgarian parliament voted for using the army at the Bulgarian borders to guard it, but since then it was used only partly.
Continue reading Traces of migration flow at the Bulgarian-Turkish border
Via University of Oxford – Turkey was regarded as a safe third country for the purposes of the EU-Turkey Statement and on September 22, 2017, the Greek Council of State approved decisions of earlier Appeals Committees, which declared Turkey a safe third country; thus paving the way for more returns. However, little is known about the reception conditions of the migrants and asylum seekers who have been readmitted to Turkey. To fill this knowledge gap and to achieve a better understanding of the impacts of the Statement, the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam Migration Law Section conducted research that was funded by the Dutch Council for Refugees.
The following article is a summary of a report by Orcun Ulusoy for Free University Berlin, which you can find here.
Continue reading Returned and Lost: What Happens After Readmission to Turkey?
Via Ekathimerini – A group of 234 refugees boarded a charter flight from Athens to Lyon, France on Wednesday as part of the European Union’s relocation program, while dozens more migrants, deemed to belong to vulnerable groups, were transferred by ferry from the islands of the Aegean to mainland Greece. Continue reading Refugees relocated, others go to mainland
Via NTV* – Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) are building bullet-proof accordion trenches in some parts of the border line of Hatay. The objective is to contribute to the Idlib tensions reduction (conflict) zone.
*Source for this news is Anadolu Ajansi, Turkey’s state run news agency.
Via IRIN – An IRIN investigation exposes a rising trend of migrant-smuggling from Turkey to Romania over a notoriously dangerous body of water.
Advertised as a “tourist yacht” to Europe, spacious and loaded with food and water, it was in fact a stripped-down, rusty blue fishing boat lacking any supplies for two stormy days at sea. Almost 160 men, women, and children were crammed on board, sick and fearful as the boat rocked violently from side to side, its leaky hold taking on water.
Continue reading Old route, new dangers: Migrant smugglers revive Black Sea route to Europe