Refugees in Belarus: Iraq steps in

The Iraqi government is now intervening in the refugee drama on the border between Belarus and Poland. She wants to bring refugees back and, according to information from the NDR, has also drawn diplomatic consequences.

By Amir Musawy and Lena Gürtler, NDR

The coming days could be very calm for the Belarusian honorary consul Majid Al-Qaysi in Baghdad. The honorary consul’s license was withdrawn “in order to protect Iraqi citizens from criminal traffickers,” said the Iraqi Foreign Ministry spokesman, Ahmed al Sahaf NDR with.

You are no longer allowed to work in the consulate, which means that visa applications can no longer be issued. The Iraqi government probably wants to prevent even more Iraqis from making their way to Belarus in order to get into the European Union from there. The Belarusian Foreign Ministry responded to a request from the NDR not to.

Iraq offers an opportunity to return

Efforts are currently being made to organize return flights from Minsk and Warsaw, said the Foreign Ministry spokesman, in order to “fly back Iraqis who voluntarily want to return home.” According to information from the Iraqi Foreign Ministry, there are currently 571 Iraqi citizens in Poland. They are spread over eight accommodations in the Polish border region with Belarus.

The ministry spokesman said the people were victims of smugglers. In the meantime, the Turkish civil flight control of the national Belarusian airline Belavia issued a flight ban for Iraqis, Syrians and Yemenis from Turkey to Belarus. This does not apply to people with diplomatic passports.

Baghdad assumes almost 8,000 refugees

In August the Iraqi government had probably stopped all direct flight connections between Iraq and Belarus under pressure from the European Union. In total, the Iraqi authorities assume that there are almost 8,000 refugees who are currently stuck between Belarus and Poland. They come mainly from the Kurdish areas in northern Iraq.

Even if they are now asked to register for return flights, most of them would probably not want to go back. A spokesman for the Iraqi Ministry of Migration admitted that. The Kurdish areas in Iraq have extensive autonomy. However, the regions are particularly suffering from the economic crisis. Refugees also complain of nepotism, corruption and a lack of future prospects.