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A bitter return for Iraqis kicked out of Europe

Iraqi Mohammed Jalal lost 10 years of his life seeking asylum in Germany, without success. Instead of being granted refuge, he was sent back to the land he had fled.He now faces the same challenges that drove him to leave the northern Kurdistan region of Iraq. More than a year has passed, and he is still without a job.Jalal is just one of thousands of Iraqis and migrants from many other countries who have been forced out of Europe as it tightens its migration policies, driven by the rise of the extreme right.European states are now working closely with Iraq to support returns by funding programmes primarily aimed at tackling unemployment.In the town of Ranya in autonomous Kurdistan, Jalal moved back in with his elderly father to a cramped two-room apartment where they sleep on mattresses on a cold concrete floor.”If I could return to Europe I would,” 39-year-old Jalal told AFP.He still dreams of a day when German authorities grant him asylum.”I could become legal and work in a Kurdish restaurant,” he said.”Here I don’t have a job.”In 2015, Jalal undertook the perilous journey across the Mediterranean from the Turkish city of Izmir to Greece.He went to North Macedonia, Serbia and Croatia before finally reaching Germany. There, he settled in a centre for asylum seekers and received 300 euros ($385) a month.Despite restrictions on asylum seekers getting jobs, Jalal travelled to cities including Nuremberg and Munich where he worked illegally and had to be careful not to be caught.- ‘Path of death’ -Jalal’s asylum requests were denied twice and Germany expelled him in January last year.Back home, following a failed attempt to open a bakery, he worked for two months at a falafel kiosk earning $7 a day.Unemployed again, he now receives $150 from his family abroad. “I live on this meagre amount,” he said.In the last quarter of 2024, around 125,000 non-Europeans were ordered to leave a country in the European Union, 16 percent more than during the same period in 2023.”As a matter of principle, Germany repatriates people who are required to leave the country,” the German embassy in Baghdad told AFP.It said Germany “has given protection and shelter to millions of people who have fled war and violence in their home countries”, including many Iraqis, mostly from the north.But the embassy warned that “there are no prospects of residence for people who enter Germany irregularly in the hope of a better life and who have no need for protection”.Despite presenting itself as an oasis of stability in turbulent Iraq, Kurdistan is grappling with economic challenges that push its young people to seek opportunities elsewhere.Many have lost their lives while trying to reach Europe.Hardi Ahmed left Ranya, east of the Kurdistan capital Arbil, in 2021.He called his journey to the United Kingdom the “path of death” after losing three friends to drowning, one in the Channel between France and Britain.Upon arrival, Ahmed quickly realised he was not welcome. He was turned back to France, where the Iraqi embassy helped him return home.Back in Kurdistan, the 39-year-old is now unemployed, and believes the authorities should provide jobs.”If not, youth will be forced… to go to Europe,” he said.- ‘Stay in Iraq’ -After decades marred by conflict, including a US-led invasion followed by insurgencies and the rise of Islamic State group jihadists, Iraq has now regained some stability.The German government-linked development agency GIZ supports centres in Arbil and Baghdad that provide returnees with counselling and help in job searches, training and providing financial aid for small businesses.Funded by Germany, Switzerland and the EU, the centres assisted 350 people between June 2023 and August 2024.The EU ambassador to Iraq, Thomas Seiler, told AFP that “some member states have agreed on bilateral return and readmission agreements with Iraq”, and the EU is finalising a similar deal.The capacity of many European cities and villages “to receive and integrate” migrants “has long been reached”, Seiler warned.”Irregular migration should now clearly be prevented.”Seiler said the EU funds programmes to assist Iraq in welcoming back returnees. It also provides tens of millions of euros to support initiatives aimed at helping “Iraqis stay in Iraq”.- Indebted migrants -With funding from Denmark and Finland, the Kurdish Rwanga Foundation launched a programme to reintegrate returnees.It has so far trained 120 people on starting small businesses and provided grants of up to $5,600 to 15 of them.Kamiran Shivan, head of the foundation’s programmes, said beneficiaries’ sectors include construction, carpentry, mobile and electronics repair, restaurants and beauty salons.Many Iraqis return home burdened with debt from the cost of their journey to Europe.”They come back without having a source of income or assets that would allow them to repay their debts,” Shivan said.Mohammed Ismail, 29, left for Germany in 2016, hoping for a better life and a European passport.But more than five years later, nothing has changed for him.Germany rejected his asylum requests three times on the basis that Arbil is considered safe.Back home in Kurdistan, he received a grant from Rwanga to become a partner in a mechanic’s workshop, which provides him with $550 a month — enough to support his wife and three-year-old child.”I no longer consider emigrating,” Ismail said. “If I return to Europe, it will be as a tourist.”

Macron tells Sharaa to protect rights of ‘all Syrians’

French President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday told visiting Syrian leader Ahmed al-Sharaa to protect all people in the multi-confessional country as the former rebel Islamist chief confirmed indirect talks with Israel aiming to calm tensions.Alarm over clashes that have left hundreds dead among among minority communities have overshadowed the first months of the government that overthrew longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad in December.Macron has been criticised for hosting a figure seen by some as a jihadist-turned-politician on his first official visit to a European country.But the French president insisted engagement was essential and offered hope of a gradual easing of the Assad-era sanctions against Damascus.Macron said he had told Sharaa in talks that he “must do everything to assure the protection of all Syrians without exception” after “unacceptable” killings that affected the Alawite and Druze minorities in recent months.He said that the “crimes had profoundly shocked the friends of Syria”The French president said Sharaa must ensure that the perpetrators of the violence are “prosecuted and tried”.Sectarian clashes in March, in which more than 1,700 people were killed, mostly among Assad’s Alawite minority, sparked international condemnation and doubts over Syria’s new path.More recent clashes involving Druze fighters and NGO reports of abuses have also raised doubts about the interim government’s ability to control extremists.- ‘Gradual lifting of sanctions’ -In response, Sharaa told the press conference that Syria “is committed to holding whoever who kills a civilian … accountable and punishing them according to the law, whoever they are.””The state bears its responsibility for everything that happens in Syria, but after the appropriate investigations,” he said.Adding to the pressure, Israel has launched hundreds of strikes on the country since Assad’s overthrow, including one near the presidential palace in Damascus on Friday.Macron said the strikes were not in Israel’s interests. “I think it’s bad practice. You don’t ensure your country’s security by violating the territorial integrity of your neighbours.”Sharaa said Syria was holding “indirect talks through mediators” with Israel to “try to contain the situation so it does not reach the point where it escapes the control of both sides.” He did not give details however.Macron meanwhile called for a continuation of “the gradual lifting of European economic sanctions” if the new Islamist authorities stabilise the country.He added Washington should follow suit and also hold off for “as long as possible” from withdrawing American troops from Syria.Sharaa said there was no justification for maintaining European sanctions imposed against the Assad government.Ahead of the talks, Sharaa met a whistleblower who helped document horrific torture under Assad, Farid al-Madhan, known as “Caesar”.Madhan revealed his identity in February during an interview with broadcaster Al Jazeera. He fled Syria in 2013 with some 55,000 graphic images including photographs showing emaciated bodies and people with their eyes gouged out.- ‘Ready to make commitments’ -Sharaa headed the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) which spearheaded Assad’s downfall after 14 years of civil war but previously had links to Al-Qaeda.He is still subject to a UN travel ban and France most likely had to request an exemption from the United Nations, as was the case for his recent trips to Turkey and Saudi Arabia, according to a source familiar with the matter. France, a former colonial-era ruler of Syria, is eyeing an opportunity to increase its influence in the country after years of Russian presence, with French companies also seeking contracts.Macron made clear France would be closely watching Sharaa’s progress. “Mr President, I count on you,” he said.The invitation to Sharaa caused controversy in France, with far-right leader Marine Le Pen accusing Macron of hosting talks with “a jihadist” in a “provocative and irresponsible” meeting.The head of the mainstream right-wing Republicans in parliament, Laurent Wauquiez, denounced the meeting as “a serious error”.”We don’t welcome leaders who are former terrorists and members of organisations that want to attack France,” he said.Macron strongly defended the invitation.”He has put an end to a regime that we condemned and fought against and he is ready to make commitments. The first actions have led to results,” Macron said.

US envoy Witkoff briefs UN Security Council on Gaza, other issues

US envoy Steve Witkoff briefed members of the UN Security Council on Wednesday about various topics, including Gaza, participants in the closed-door talks said.The informal meeting in New York came a day after Witkoff was formally sworn in as President Donald Trump’s special envoy for the Middle East.At the swearing-in ceremony, Trump teased a “very, very big announcement” to come before his multi-nation visit to the Middle East next week, without providing details.Witkoff, a billionaire real estate developer and close Trump ally, has been acting as lead US negotiator on several major disputes, including the Israel-Hamas war, the Russia-Ukraine conflict and  Iran’s nuclear program.After the meeting Wednesday, ambassadors from the UN Security Council’s 14 other members declined to give details of Witkoff’s remarks.”It was confidential,” Pakistani Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad said.Panamanian Ambassador Eloy Alfaro de Alba called it “an informal meeting, it was very interesting, about various subjects, not only Gaza.”Since Trump’s return to office in January there has not been a permanent US ambassador to the UN, making it difficult for council members to stay abreast of American positions on various issues, some diplomats have said.Witkoff also met separately on Wednesday with Israel’s UN ambassador, Danny Danon.Danon said afterward they had an “important discussion about the regional issues.””We will continue to cooperate with our strongest ally, the United States,” he added.