BAGHDAD: Iraq has repatriated 370 of its nationals from the Belarus border with Lithuania, a government source said Wednesday, after accusations that Minsk has been encouraging unauthorized arrivals of migrants to the EU.
Baghdad last week announced a suspension of flights to Belarus to stem the flow and “protect Iraqi citizens who have been victims of smuggling networks.”
Iraqi foreign ministry spokesman Ahmed Al-Sahaf said a special flight returned to Baghdad from Minsk on Tuesday night with 240 Iraqis on board, a day after 130 others were flown back home.
Additional flights will be laid on to return more Iraqis stranded on the Belarus frontier with EU member Lithuania, he said, although their number was unknown “because the border is very long,” he told AFP.
The European Union on Tuesday reported a “significant decrease” in migrants crossing the border from Belarus since Iraq halted the regular Baghdad-Minsk flights.
Lithuania accuses Belarusian authorities of funnelling migrants to its border in retaliation for EU sanctions.
The sanctions have been imposed over President Alexander Lukashenko’s crackdown on the opposition and protesters in the wake of a disputed ballot.
Parliament in Lithuania has passed a law giving the green light to the construction of a fence along its border with Belarus.
Lithuania, which has offered strong support and refuge to the Belarusian opposition, began turning back migrants this week, after more than 4,000 people entered the country from Belarus since the start of the year.
EU ministers are to hold crisis talks on the migration influx issue next week.
370 Iraqi would-be migrants to EU flown home from Belarus
https://arab.news/vxye3
370 Iraqi would-be migrants to EU flown home from Belarus
- Baghdad last week announced a suspension of flights to Belarus to stem the flow and “protect Iraqi citizens who have been victims of smuggling networks”
- EU ministers are to hold crisis talks on the migration influx issue next week
Russian drone attack forces power cuts in Ukraine’s Kryvyi Rih, military says
- Kyiv says the campaign has forced rolling outages and emergency cuts to cities across the country, as repair crews work under fire and Ukraine relies on air defenses and electricity imports to stabilize the grid
KYIV: Russian drones struck infrastructure in the central Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih on Wednesday, forcing emergency power blackouts for more than 45,000 customers and disrupting heat supplies, military administration head Oleksandr Vilkul said.
“Please fill up on water and charge your devices, if you have the chance. It’s going to be difficult,” Vilkul said on the Telegram messaging app.
Water utility pumping stations switched to generators and water remained in the system, but there could be pressure problems.
The full scale of the attack was not immediately known. There was no comment from Russia about the strike.
Russia has repeatedly struck Ukraine’s power plants, substations and transmission lines with missiles and drones, seeking to knock out electricity and heating and hinder industry during the nearly four-year war.
Kyiv says the campaign has forced rolling outages and emergency cuts to cities across the country, as repair crews work under fire and Ukraine relies on air defenses and electricity imports to stabilize the grid.
Kryvyi Rih, a steel-and-mining hub in the Dnipropetrovsk region and President Volodymyr Zelensky’s hometown, has been hit repeatedly, with strikes killing civilians and damaging homes and industry.
The city sits close enough to southern front lines to be within strike range, while its factories, logistics links and workforce make it economically important and a key rear-area center supporting Ukraine’s war effort.
