Iraq to evacuate migrants stranded at Belarus-Poland border

MOSCOW – More than 400 Iraqis sought to alert location from Belarus connected Thursday, abandoning their hopes of reaching the European Union pursuing much than a week of tensions astatine the bloc's eastbound borderline wherever hundreds of migrants stay stuck.

A level carrying an chartless fig is expected to depart from Minsk successful the aboriginal day and marque 2 stops — 1 successful the metropolis of Erbil and different successful the capital, Baghdad. A full of 430 Iraqis person registered for flights home, and astir of those were already astatine the airport, according to Iraq's consul successful Russia Majid al-Kilani.

Since Nov. 8, a ample radical of people, mostly from the Middle East, has been stranded successful Belarus astatine a borderline crossing with Poland, trapped arsenic forces from the 2 countries look disconnected against each other. Most are fleeing struggle oregon hopelessness astatine location and purpose to scope Germany oregon different occidental European countries.

The West has accused Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko of luring the migrants to the borderline to usage them arsenic pawns to destabilize the 27-nation bloc successful retaliation for its sanctions connected his authoritarian regime. Belarus denies orchestrating the crisis, which has seen migrants entering the state since summertime and past trying to transverse into Poland, Lithuania and Latvia.

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Some 2,000 radical are reported to person camped successful the acold astatine the border, immoderate with children, and astatine slightest 11 deaths were reported successful caller weeks arsenic temperatures person dropped. Poland didn't privation to fto them in, and Belarus didn't privation them returning to the superior of Minsk oregon different settling successful the country.

On Tuesday evening, Belarusian authorities offered to determination radical to a adjacent warehouse, wherever they were fixed a heated abstraction to stay, mattresses, h2o and blistery meals.

About 1,000 migrants were staying successful the warehouse connected Wednesday, portion different 800 radical remained successful the makeshift campy astatine the border, according to the Belarusian Red Cross. It's not wide if determination are different migrants elsewhere successful Belarus.

The connection of structure came aft a melee broke retired connected the border, with migrants throwing stones astatine Polish forces massed connected their broadside of the razor-wire fence, injuring 12, and the troops responded with h2o cannons and teardrop gas. Warsaw accused Belarusian forces of instigating the conflict, portion the authorities successful Minsk denounced Poland’s “violent actions.”

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Poland has taken a pugnacious basal against the migrants’ amerciable entry, reinforcing the borderline with riot constabulary and troops and making plans to physique a gangly alloy barrier. The Polish attack has mostly met with support from different EU nations, who privation to halt different question of migration.

But Poland besides has been criticized by quality rights groups and others for pushing migrants backmost into Belarus and not allowing them to use for asylum.

Lukashenko, meanwhile, has rejected accusations of engineering the situation and said his authorities has deported astir 5,000 amerciable migrants from Belarus this fall.

In May, however, helium had railed against the EU sanctions imposed connected his state for its harsh crackdown connected interior dissent, saying: “We were stopping migrants and drugs — present you volition drawback them and devour them yourself.”

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