BRUSSELS: European Union leaders concluded a controversial deal with Turkey on Friday intended to halt illegal migration flows to Europe in return for financial and political rewards for Ankara.
The accord aims to close the main route over which a million migrants and refugees poured across the Aegean Sea to Greece before marching north to Germany and Sweden in the last year. But deep doubts remain about whether it is legal or workable.
After a morning of talks with Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, European Council President Donald Tusk recommended that the 28 EU member states approve the text without changes and they rapidly agreed at a summit lunch in Brussels.
“Agreement with Turkey approved. All illegal migrants who arrive to Greece from Turkey starting March 20 will be returned!” Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka tweeted, before Tusk confirmed unanimous agreement among the EU and Turkey.
Under the pact, Ankara would take back all illegal migrants who cross to Greece, including Syrians, in return for the EU taking in thousands of Syrian refugees directly from Turkey and rewarding it with more money, early visa-free travel and progress in its EU membership negotiations.
The EU also agreed to accelerate disbursement of 3 billion euros already pledged in support for refugees in Turkey and to provide a further 3 billion by 2018 once Ankara came up with a list of projects that qualified for EU assistance.
In Turkey, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan blasted several EU states for taking only a “handful of refugees” in contrast to the nearly three million Turkey has admitted, most of them fleeing the Syrian war.
He also accused the Europeans of supporting the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) days after a bombing in Ankara claimed by Kurdish rebels that killed 35 people, and warned they faced similar attacks.
“European countries are paying no attention, as if they are dancing in a minefield,” he said.
Despite the tough talk there were signs of progress, as Tusk later called a meeting of all 28 EU leaders to update them on his talks with Davutoglu before the Turkish premier met with his counterparts, Tusk’s spokesman said.
EU, Turkey clinch deal to send back migrants
EU, Turkey clinch deal to send back migrants
UK police drop probe into Bob Vylan comments about Israeli military
- Performance by Bob Vylan included on-stage chants by lead singer of “death, death to the IDF”
LONDON: British police said on Tuesday they would take no further action over comments made about the Israeli military during a performance by punk duo Bob Vylan at the Glastonbury music festival in June.
“We have concluded, after reviewing all the evidence, that it does not meet the criminal threshold outlined by the CPS (Crown Prosecution Service) for any person to be prosecuted,” Avon and Somerset Police said.
The performance by Bob Vylan included on-stage chants by lead singer Bobby Vylan of “death, death to the IDF,” a reference to the Israel Defense Forces which was heavily involved in fighting in Gaza.
There was insufficient evidence for a realistic prospect of conviction, the police said.
The force said it interviewed a man in his mid-30s and contacted about 200 members of the public during the investigation.
The on-stage comments drew widespread criticism, including from Prime Minister Keir Starmer and the Israeli Embassy in London. The BBC, Britain’s publicly owned broadcaster, also faced backlash for not halting a livestream of the performance.
In its statement on Tuesday, Avon and Somerset Police said it considered the intent behind the words, the wider context, case law and freedom of speech issues before concluding the investigation.
“We believe it is right this matter was comprehensively investigated, every potential criminal offense was thoroughly considered, and we sought all the advice we could to ensure we made an informed decision,” it said.
“The comments made on Saturday 28 June drew widespread anger, proving that words have real-world consequences,” the statement said, adding the force had engaged with Jewish community groups throughout the process.
