Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin - MERGE - Migration and the Middle East

Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin | Projects | MERGE - Migration and the Middle East | Regional Briefings | Middle Eastern Asylums in the Wake of the Russian Invasion in Ukraine

Middle Eastern Asylums in the Wake of the Russian Invasion in Ukraine

by Y. Emre Küçükkaya

Unlike those fleeing conflict in Syria and other Middle Eastern countries, Ukrainians find a much warmer welcome in Europe as the continent has opened its doors to refugees, CNN says. The UNHCR announced in a statement to CNN that three million Ukrainians have been offered unconditional asylum and protection in neighboring countries across the European Union. In comparison, a UN report from 2021 shows that of the nearly 7 million Syrian refugees forced to flee their home, about one million have settled in Europe. According to another CNN report, Denmark is also opening its arms to Ukrainians, while attempting to send Syrian refugees home. As reported by Deutsche Welle, thousands of Ukrainian refugees have entered Greece and enjoyed international protection, whereas non-Ukrainian refugees have experienced tense and frustrating conditions as a result of languishing in a legal gray area for years. On Al Jazeera, Karolina Augustova questions why Europe is suddenly so eager to aid refugees. 

Meanwhile, the Ukrainian refugee situation appears to have a significant impact on millions of other refugees and displaced people living in other parts of the world. According to the Norwegian Refugee Council, it will cause four major problems for non-European asylums: more neglect of their situations, less money to allocate upon humanitarian needs (especially in Yemen), food shortages, and more difficulty to find political solutions. Refugees have already seen a reduction in the amount of food provided by the WFP in East Africa and the Middle East. 16 million people live in Yemen where they do not know if they will eat tomorrow.

There are reports that the Belarusian military is forcing asylum seekers from the Middle East who became trapped in the country after they were promised passage to the EU to cross into war-torn Ukraine. Those seeking asylum have two choices: crossing the Polish border, where they were beaten back, or entering Ukraine.

Amnesty International said that Egypt had deported 31 Eritreans in the past two weeks: In violation of the prohibition of refoulement under international law as serious human rights violations, including torture.

 

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