Sunday, November 8, 2015

Islamic invasion of Europe update (November 8, 2015)





Germany shelves the idea of temporary asylum for Syrians
German Chancellor Angela Merkel's chief of staff is downplaying a short-lived initiative by the interior minister to give many Syrians restricted asylum, insisting that the matter is settled and procedures remain unchanged.

Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere appeared to catch Merkel's governing coalition by surprise when he said Friday that many Syrians should get "subsidiary protection," which comes with only a one-year renewable residence permit and wouldn't allow them to bring relatives to Germany for two years. Amid criticism, he shelved the idea hours later.

Vice Chancellor Sigmar Gabriel has said the idea apparently was produced in the Interior Ministry without consultation. Merkel's chief of staff, Peter Altmaier, made clear in an interview with Deutschlandfunk radio broadcast Sunday that he hadn't been aware that the initiative had been launched.

Spain gets its first batch of Syrian and Eritrean colonizers
Spain's interior minister says the first of more than 1,400 refugees from Syria and Eritrea are being welcomed for resettlement in new homes across the country.

Jorge Fernandez Diaz said that an initial group of 19 refugees was being housed Sunday, placing Spain "at the vanguard of European Union nations that are putting into effect relocation plans."

Jose Luis Madrazo, director of family policy of the Basque government, said three Eritrean refugees were arriving in the northern region and "if everything goes well" they would soon be followed by around 1,000 more.

Madrazo said "we thought the process would go faster" but paperwork and preparations had been complex, adding that it was "strange that only three people can come now."

Spain has agreed to relocate some 1,450 refugees from war-torn countries.



Nordic welcome chillier for migrants as numbers snowball
Oslo (AFP) - Asylum seekers flowing to Scandinavia are finding chillier welcomes as their numbers surge and far-right parties increasingly assert their influence on immigration policy, analysts say.

Denmark, Norway and Finland -- but also Sweden, heretofore especially welcoming to migrants -- have begun cutting back the benefits they offer to newcomers while also hardening their asylum policies.

"It seems there's a certain amount of competition aimed at not offering the most generous social benefits to asylum seekers," said Asle Toje, a Norwegian international relations expert.