As I said the other day, there isn’t much news about refugees in the US in the wake of the Chinese virus shutdown except for the fluffy-puffy storieslike this onefrom St. Louis where we learn about the challenging times (no jobs!) a new refugee family from the DR Congo is having as they arrived in the US (in March!) in the midst of stay at home orders.
Still no word when the US would fully open the refugee pipeline, however I see that according to data at the Refugee Processing Centerwe have admitted 35 refugees since May 1.
None came from the DR Congo. They came from various countries with the largest number (14) coming from Syria. Those 14 Syrians were resettled in Idaho, NY and NC.
Meanwhile the Chinese Virus has caused some shifting in target countries (we are told) with fewer migrants seeking asylum in Germany and more going to Spain. Of course that makes no sense to me as Spain has a huge death toll from the virus.
However, this was enlightening and surely explains the attraction to Spain: Spain is welcoming large numbers of asylum seekers from Colombia, Venezuela and Honduras. They must be flying into Spain and simply asking for asylum when they land.
Germany no longer top destination for asylum seekers in Europe
The number of asylum seekers arriving in the European Union decreased significantly in the first quarter of 2020. Spain has overtaken Germany as the country receiving the most asylum applications – suggesting that the coronavirus epidemic is shifting long-standing migration patterns.
Asylum applications in Europe down 25 percent
The number of asylum applications submitted to EU member states, Switzerland and Norway went down by 25 percent in the first four months of 2020, Die Welt reported last week, citing as-yet unpublished numbers from the EU’s asylum agency EASO.
From the beginning of January to the end of April, a total of 164.718 asylum applications were submitted. During the same period in 2019, more than 220.000 applications were received. This year, Spain received the most applications (37.471) – mostly from migrants from Colombia, Venezuela and Honduras.
The uptick in migration from Latin America means that Germany – traditionally the top destination in Europe for asylum seekers – fell in the first quarter of the year to second place, with 33.714 applications, of which 23 percent came from Syria, 9,3 percent from Iraq and 7,7 percent from Afghanistan.
The next top destinations included France with 28.710 applications, Greece (21.153) and Italy (8.025).
Another reason Germany may have lost its luster is that Germany requires asylum seekers to live in reception centers and there are an increasing number of reports of asylum seekers held in German refugee ‘camps’ infected with COVID-19.
Open Borders activists are raising a ruckus, but note that most of those who tested positive are asymptomatic or have only mild symptoms.
At least 70 people at a refugee home near Bonn have tested positive for COVID-19. News of the outbreak prompted calls for better protection for asylum-seekers and more testing at the often crowded facilities.
[….]
Most of the people who have tested positive for the virus either had mild or no symptoms, the district government said.
The residents who tested positive have been isolated, authorities said, adding that 60 people whose tests came back negative have been transferred to another home.
Testing ‘happening far too late’
News of the outbreak prompted swift criticism, with politicians urging for better protections for asylum-seekers.
[….]
Asylum-seekers in Germany are required to live in “reception centers,” or shared accommodations, during their asylum applications. Many live with several hundred other inhabitants, with some sharing rooms with strangers.
The conditions and lack of privacy in Germany’s facilities for asylum-seekers have long been criticized by refugee and immigrant rights groups, with the coronavirus pandemic raising fears among asylum-seekers and activists alike.
In case you are wondering how the Rohingya in Bangladesh are faring with the arrival of the virus, there is no additional news and apparently no spreading like wildfire yet. We are watching!
Believe it or not, there is other news in the world these days that doesn’t involve the Chinese virus!
Just one of the tens of thousands of ‘refugees’ who have made their way to Europe! So much for the highly touted biometric data!
“This is a major problem,” a counter-terrorism official in Belgium told Insider. “Abdel-Bary isn’t some Syrian guy nobody has ever heard of. He’s a well-known jihadist from a well-known jihadist family … Now it turns out he’s not dead but rather living in a rented apartment on the Spanish coast.”
The arrest in Spain of an infamous member of Islamic State from London who authorities thought had been killed in Syria has sparked fears among security officials that more foreign fighters survived the fall of ISIS-controlled territory than previously imagined.
Worse, sources tell Insider, he found a way to smuggle himself back into Europe by avoiding customs checks and biometric tracking at borders.
Abdel-Majed Abdel-Bary and two unnamed associates were arrested Monday by Spanish police in the Mediterranean port city of Almeria after coordination with the UK domestic intelligence service MI5, which had been attempting to track him since he left the UK to join ISIS in Syria in 2015.
Abdel-Bary is the son of Adel Abdel Bari, who has been accused of killing 224 people in various bomb attacks across Africa. Some believe he is linked to the terror cell that committed the Bataclan massacre in Paris in 2015.
“This is a major problem,” a counter-terrorism official in Belgium told Insider.
“Abdel-Bary isn’t some Syrian guy nobody has ever heard of. He’s a well-known jihadist from a well-known jihadist family who was active on social media from Syria and was closely linked to both the cyber-caliphate activities of Junaid Hussain and the cell of UK fighters who controlled the Western hostages in Raqqa.
Now it turns out he’s not dead but rather living in a rented apartment on the Spanish coast.”
Just another of those poor suffering refugees.
The official said the immediate suspicion was that Abdel-Bary was able to make his way back to Europe at some point in the last few years amid the ongoing flood of civilian refugees.
[….]
“Who else is living here inside Schengen […the area of 26 countries in mainland Europe through which citizens are allowed to move without passports] and able to move around freely without showing ID?” asked the Belgian official, who had tracked both the Molenbeek Cell and then assisted French and Belgian special forces in targeting Francophone fighters during the fighting in Mosul and Raqqa from 2016 to 2019.
[….]
Abdel-Bary, 28, was involved in drug dealing and had a small star turn as a jihadi inspired rapper. He was influenced by his Egyptian-born father’s yearslong detention in the UK while awaiting extradition to the US on charges he was a member of al Qaida who helped plan the 1998 East African embassy bombings in Kenya and Tanzania.
There is an interesting discussion about how the French and British military attempted to kill as many of their nationals who had joined ISIS presumably so they wouldn’t have to bother with them if they turned up back home in France or the UK.
See my complete ‘Invasion of Europe’archive that extends back for a decade. LOL! You might have a little extra reading time on your hands these days!
Endnote: You might have noticed that both of my blogs were down for awhile yesterday. Apparently my hosting company was doing some fixes, nothing nefarious!
Too bad that this decision is at least ten years too late. But maybe just in time. Perhaps one of the primary driving forces that saw the UK vote to get out of the European Union was a desire to control their own borders.
And, when I say it might be just in time, when I saw this news from Gatestonethis morning all I could think of was what the heck is Europe going to do if the Coronavirus spreads to Africa—will panic set in and will millions (more) try to make it to Europe where medical treatment would surely be better?
The case involved Africans breaking into Ceuta and Melilla, Spanish territory that joins Morocco.
Spain: European Court Approves Summary Deportations of Illegal Migrants
In a landmark decision that will have potentially seismic implications for immigration policy in Europe, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has ruled that Spain acted lawfully when it summarily deported two migrants who illegally tried to enter Spanish territory.
Attempting to set foot on European soil, African migrants have been for years rushing the border fence between Morocco and Spanish territory.
The Strasbourg-based court — which has jurisdiction over 47 European countries, and whose rulings are binding on all 27 member states of the European Union — ruled that in order for migrants to benefit from certain human rights protections, such as access to lawyers, interpreters and the right to remain in Europe, they must first enter European territory in a legal, as opposed to an illegal, manner.
The ruling, which effectively authorizes European governments summarily to deport illegal migrants immediately at the border, transfers some decision-making powers on immigration back to European nation states.
The ruling is being viewed as a major victory for those who believe that sovereign nation states have the right to decide who is and is not allowed to enter their territory.
I’ve been thinking about this in recent days so this is a good time to mention it. What happens if (when) the Coronavirus reaches Africa (beyond Egypt), will panic set in? Will there be a rush to find better medical care?
See where it is this week (and notice that it is not contained to only cold places of the world, since it is hot in Australia at the moment).
That was fast! It only took a few months for a WELCOMING Socialist government to learn that you simply can’t have open borders.
It was only in June that we reported Spain’s foolish (virtue-signalling) move to invite the Aquarius migrant transport ship to drop off 600 MORE illegal aliens.
My, my, times have changed….
This news is at Voice of America, generally a pretty squishy media outlet when it comes to the issue of immigration, but this story is pretty hard-hitting.
Interior Minister Matteo Salvini says that before anyone can step off the ship, other EU countries must agree to take the migrants to their own countries.
The Ubaldo Diciotti in the port of Catania last night
At least 70 people at a refugee home near Bonn have tested positive for COVID-19. News of the outbreak prompted calls for better protection for asylum-seekers and more testing at the often crowded facilities.
