The city of Strasbourg wanted it, the state decided it. As of tomorrow Thursday, 150 Afghan refugees who managed to flee their country following the Taliban seizure of power will be welcomed in the city center of the European capital as part of the emergency operation set up by France. They are among the 2,000 refugees already evacuated via Abu Dhabi and the majority of whom, for practical and logistical reasons, are first accommodated in the Paris region.
A “quality welcome”
The 150 people will arrive by bus from Roissy airport tomorrow morning and will be able to do their ten-day quarantine at the Mercure hotel. Hotel which was requisitioned by the State for a period of one month, in order to have a certain margin “within the framework of this exceptional and temporary situation” specifies the prefecture which oversees the operation. The important thing “is the shelter of people”, stressed during a press conference Josiane Chevalier, prefect of Bas-Rhin and Grand-Est. “A temporary and emergency device” whose priority was given to “quality reception, solidarity” after “the trauma suffered” added the prefect. For the time being, the Strasbourg authorities do not yet know the profile and state of health of its 150 people, whether there are families, children… They will adapt accordingly.
With its long expertise in this area, the association for helping refugees and asylum seekers Notre-Dame foyer immediately responded to the state’s call to assist and support the new arrivals. The Regional Health Agency (ARS) will take charge of all the medical assessment and psychological care. Everything will be fully funded by the State which will also rely on several associations including the Red Cross.
Refugees currently benefit from a 15-day visa and the French Office for Immigration and Integration (OFII) has also mobilized to assess their vulnerability and needs, but above all to support those who wish to do so in their asylum application procedures. A one-stop-shop will be opened to facilitate their arrival before following, later, a traditional path of integration. “We are at the rendezvous”, assures the prefect.