Danish authorities have been accused of putting the futures of dozens of refugee children at risk by threatening to expel them to Syria, despite warnings that it is not safe to do so.
In a statement released on Wednesday, the children s rights group Save the Children said it was deeply concerned to discover that at least 70 refugee children are at risk of being expelled to Syria.
Denmark sparked an outcry after it announced plans to strip Syrian refugees from Damascus of temporary protections allowing them to stay in the country after officials determined that it was safe for them to return home.
Denmark sacrificing the future of 70 Syrian children
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Save the Children is deeply concerned to discover that 70 refugee children are at risk of being returned to Syria by the Danish authorities, which would be detrimental to their physical and mental safety.
Hundreds of Syrian refugees from the Damascus region are at risk of losing their Danish residency permits, which puts them at risk of being sent back to Syria a country steeped in conflict for ten years. Save the Children can confirm that some 70 children have been rejected in the first stage of the process, and are now waiting for a second, final decision.
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Virus surge threatens northeast Syria camps, Save the Children warns Authorities this month have confirmed 46 coronavirus cases across three camps hosting displaced people in northeast Syria.
A group of women, reportedly the wives of suspected Islamic State (IS) group fighters, pose March 28, 2021, for a picture at the Roj camp where relatives of suspected IS members are held, in the countryside near al-Malikiyah (Derik) in Syria s northeastern Hasakah province. The women have abandoned the black all-covering face veils and niqabs they wore previously for everyday clothes.
April 15, 2021
A surge of coronavirus cases could worsen an already dire humanitarian situation in northeast Syria’s displacement camps, Save the Children said Thursday.
North East Syria: COVID-19 spreads through camps as Ramadan begins under emergency lockdown
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People in displacement camps in North East Syria are being plunged into an even deeper critical situation as 46 COVID-19 cases have been reported across three camps, Save the Children said today.
The figures emerge as authorities have put the entire region under a strict 10-day emergency lockdown, with people only allowed out of their homes for essential items.
As well as the spread of the virus in the camps – which are overcrowded and lack adequate sanitation and hygiene facilities – Save the Children is concerned about the impact of the lockdown, which coincides with the start of Ramadan. Many of the services run by the organisation have been suspended.