DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) — Pope Francis is ordaining 16 priests during a Mass in Bangladesh, the start of a busy day that will also bring him face-to-face with Rohingya Muslims refugees from Myanmar. An estimated 100,000 people gathered Friday in a Dhaka park for the service, which mirrors the ordination Mass St. John Paul II … Continue reading
Tag Archives: refugees
The Latest: $340 million pledged to help Rohingya refugees
GENEVA (AP) — The Latest on the donors conference for Asia’s Rohingya refugees (all times local): 1:50 p.m. The head of the U.N. agency that coordinates humanitarian aid says have pledged roughly $340 million to help more than 600,000 ethnic Rohingya who have fled Myanmar into Bangladesh since August. Mark Lowcock of the U.N. Office … Continue reading
Family ties: 3 Iraqis in US allegedly hid link to kidnapper
ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) — Adil Hasan and his wife, Enas Ibrahim, came to the U.S. in 2008 as refugees from Iraq, and have been living peacefully in the suburbs of Washington, D.C., ever since. To get here, though, they faced a dilemma as they sat in a camp in Jordan, where they were required to … Continue reading
Rights group: Kenya forcing refugees to war-torn Somalia
NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Kenya is coercing residents of the world’s largest refugee camp to leave it and return to Somalia where they risk getting killed or forcibly recruited into the Islamic extremist group, al-Shabab, Amnesty International said Tuesday. Some who voluntarily returned to Somalia from Dadaab camp told The Associated Press they are now … Continue reading
UN refugee agency puts focus on educating kids fleeing war
GENEVA (AP) — Food, water and shelter are obvious basic needs for people fleeing war. But with refugees now spending roughly 20 years in exile on average, the U.N. refugee agency is calling on the world to do more to ensure refugee children have access to education as a fundamental right. Over 3.7 million school-age … Continue reading
Refugees from Boko Haram return home, excited but fearful
MAIDUGURI, Nigeria (AP) — Excited but fearful, refugees from Boko Haram piled into yellow school buses with their bundles of belongings, returning after two years to homes that have been torched, wells destroyed, livestock looted and fields that still may not be safe from the Islamic insurgents. On Monday, the largest group yet of such … Continue reading
Amnesty says 1.2 million Afghans internally displaced by war
KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Amnesty International said Tuesday May 24th, that more than 1.2 million Afghans have been forced to flee their homes due to violence in the past three years and urged the Kabul government and the international community to tackle the country’s growing crisis of refugees internally displaced by war. Those numbers are … Continue reading
More than 4,000 migrants rescued in single day
ROME (AP) — More than 4,000 would-be refugees were res cued at sea Thursday, May 26, in one of the busiest days of the Mediterranean migrant crisis, and at least 20 died trying to reach Europe as Libyan-based smugglers took advantage of calmer seas to send desperate migrants north. The death toll was likely to … Continue reading
Refugees, rights groups buoyed by papal spotlight
LESBOS, Greece (AP) — Municipal crews were pressure-hosing streets, pruning trees and touching up building facades on this Greek island where Pope Francis will visit Saturday, Apr. 16, a mission human rights groups hope will highlight the plight of refugees who fled their war-ravaged homes only to be denied entry to Europe. The Vatican insists … Continue reading
EU calls for Greece relief as migrant arrivals hit 1 million
ATHENS, Greece (AP) — The European Union told member states Wednesday, Mar. 16, they “urgently need to deliver” on commitments to resettle more refugees on the continent, as the number of refugees arriving in Greece since the start of 2015 reached the 1 million mark. The demand came on the eve of a summit … Continue reading
With EU borders closing, it’s a boom time for smugglers
BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — Tensions simmered one night inside the smoky Belgrade City cafe in a rough neighborhood near the train station. The price of a human being was being decided. Dozens of young Middle Eastern and African men dressed in track suits and woolen caps were frantically negotiating with a Serbian smuggler on the … Continue reading
Rights group: fearing refugees, West curtails human rights
ISTANBUL (AP) — Western governments fearful of terror attacks and the potential threat posed by refugees are adopting counterproductive policies in the name of security, Human Rights Watch said in its world report Wednesday, Jan. 27. HRW executive director Kenneth Roth said “fear of being killed or starved” drove millions of people to flee Syria … Continue reading
Obama to visit Asia refugee center amid raging debate in US
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — President Barack Obama is planning to visit a refugee center in Malaysia, casting a spotlight on the plight of those fleeing violence and persecution from Myanmar to Syria. Obama’s tour of the Dignity for Children Foundation on Saturday comes amid a raging debate back home over Obama’s plan to allow … Continue reading
EU free travel in danger as borders tighten, fences go up
VALLETTA, Malta (AP) — Passport free travel in Europe is under threat as countries reintroduce border controls, toughen security and build fences in response to the biggest refugee emergency the continent has seen in decades. The Schengen open-borders zone uniting 30 countries is a pinnacle of European achievement. It underpins the EU economy, allowing goods, … Continue reading
Mohammed’s Journey: A Syrian’s long quest for a normal life
AT THE SERBIAN-HUNGARIAN BORDER (AP) — At the edge of a Balkan vineyard, Mohammed al-Haj lay down under a tree to collect his thoughts. Come nightfall, he and the other Syrians with him would make a run for it, past the fence of chain-link and barbed wire being built along the Hungarian border to keep … Continue reading
European ministers agree to relocate 120,000 refugees
BRUSSELS (AP) — Deeply divided European Union ministers agreed Tuesday to relocate 120,000 asylum-seekers to ease the strain on Greece and Italy, which are on the front line of the migrant flood. But a senior European leader conceded the move was only a small step toward resolving one of the worst crises ever faced by … Continue reading
Germany implements temporary border checks to limit migrants
BERLIN (AP) — Germany introduced temporary border controls Sunday to stem the tide of thousands of refugees streaming across its frontier, sending a clear message to its European partners that it needs more help with an influx that is straining its ability to cope. Germany is a preferred destination for many people fleeing Syria’s civil … Continue reading
Poles ambiguous over EU’s, Francis’ call on refugees
WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Thousands held opposing rallies Saturday in several Polish cities, with radical right-wingers marching against hosting asylum seekers and others in smaller numbers supporting helping those in need. Some 10,000 nationalists and right-wingers marched in the rain through downtown Warsaw, waving national white-and-red flags and chanting “Today refugees, tomorrow terrorists!” and “Poland, … Continue reading
Germany implements temporary border checks to limit migrants
BERLIN (AP) — Germany introduced temporary border controls Sunday to stem the tide of thousands of refugees streaming across its frontier, sending a clear message to its European partners that it needs more help with an influx that is straining its ability to cope. Germany is a preferred destination for many people fleeing Syria’s civil … Continue reading
Clinton: ‘Global effort’ needed to help refugees in Europe
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) — Hillary Rodham Clinton is calling for a “concerted global effort” to assist the hundreds of thousands of refugees from the Middle East, Africa and Asia seeking refuge in Europe. In an interview with The Associated Press, the front-runner for the Democratic presidential nomination said Monday, September 7, that “everyone should … Continue reading
Kenya seeks to voluntarily repatriate 100,000 Somalis
The Kenyan government announced a goal to get 100,000 Somali refugees to return home voluntarily by the end of the year, a government official said Thursday as funding shortages have forced the U.N to reduce food rations for the displaced. Government officials have blamed refugee camps in Kenya for the rise in extremism in the … Continue reading