Burundian Refugees Flee DRC, Fearing Repatriation
At least 2,500 Burundian refugees have fled the Democratic Republic of Congo, fearing enforced repatriation, and sought refuge in neighboring Rwanda.
Most of the refugees had lived in Congo since unrest erupted in their country in 2015. The Burundian government insists it is safe for refugees to come home, but United Nations investigators have documented ongoing killings and torture.
Some 44,00 Burundian refugees live in the DRC, among 400,000 sheltering in neighboring countries, mostly in Tanzania. Last September, dozens of Burundians were killed at a protest against repatriations in South Kivu, DRC.
Germany Deports Egyptians After Cooperation Deal
Germany deported the first group of Egyptian migrants and rejected asylum seekers since agreeing a cooperation deal last summer, according to the Associated Press.
Officials in Cairo said 100 Egyptians returned on a flight from Frankfurt and all were released after police questioning. Germany acknowledged deporting only nine Egyptians.
The two countries signed a deal to increase cooperation over migration last August. German Chancellor Angela Merkel has long tried to accelerate the deportation of migrants to Egypt, as well as to other countries in Africa.
Hardliner Gets Top Admissions Job at U.S. State Department
A hardline immigration adviser to the White House has been appointed to lead refugee admissions at the State Department.
Andrew Veprek’s appointment as deputy assistant secretary of the Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration alarmed supporters of refugee resettlement.
“My experience is that he strongly believes that fewer refugees should admitted into the United States and that international migration is something to be stopped, not managed,” a former State Department official told Politico, describing Veprek’s views on refugees and migrants as “vindictive.”
The bureau’s top leadership position remains vacant. Veprek is a close ally of Donald Trump’s aide Stephen Miller, the architect of many of the president’s restrictive refugee and migration policies, which have seen levels of refugee resettlement to the U.S. collapse.
Recommended Reads:
- Voice of America: Turkey Eyes Refugees Returning to Afrin, Syria
- LitHub: Highlighting the Writing of Refugees
- New Statesman: Refugees at Home: Can a Charity Persuade Brits to Open Their Doors in the Age of Brexit?
- Kaldor Center: Five Questions: On Canada’s Refugee Sponsorship Program