Briefing Notes Group 62 - Information Centre for Asylum and Migration - European Country of Origin ...
←
→
Page content transcription
If your browser does not render page correctly, please read the page content below
Briefing Notes
Group 62 – Information Centre for Asylum and Migration
5 October 2020
Afghanistan
COVID-19 pandemic
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) and the World Health Organisation (WHO)
report that food safety has been steadily declining over the last five years. Analyses and forecasts for 2020/21
indicate that, not least due to the pandemic, the situation will continue to deteriorate in the coming winter. It is
expected that the indebtedness of private households will rise sharply, both in terms of the number of people in
debt and the extent of that debt, the organizations stated.
Attacks, hostilities, civilian victims
Both government staff and people perceived as close to the government remain in the focus of anti-government
forces. On 5 October 2020, a suicide attack was carried out on the governor of Laghman province. The governor
survived, but at least four bodyguards and four civilians were killed in the attack, at least 28 other civilians were
injured. Between 3 and 4 October, at least five people were killed in attacks in Kabul, among them two army officers
and one policeman. Another suicide attack was carried out on 1 October in Kabul against an independent electoral
commission representative who survived the assault. Also on 1 October, a woman was shot dead by unknown
gunmen in Maimana (Faryab Province) when she was leaving a bus. The local chairman of the Afghan Human Rights
Commission suspects a connection with the fact that she was married to a soldier of the Afghan National Army. On
30 September, a car bomb attack targeted a security forces checkpoint in Helmand province, killing five police
officers and four civilians who happened to be present at the site. Four other people were injured, among them a
child. On 29 September, the police chief of Kohistan district in Badakhshan province was killed in a Taliban attack.
According to research by the New York Times, at least 429 pro-government forces and 134 civilians died in security-
related incidents in different provinces in September 2020 (as of 1 October 2020).
Names of mothers to be included on children’s identity documents
In future, the mother’s name is to be recorded on birth certificates and identity documents of children in addition
to the name of the father. On 15 September 2020, President Ghani signed a corresponding law. This measure will
make it easier for mothers to obtain education, medical care, passports and other documents for their children, as
well as to travel with them. This particularly applies to widowed, divorced or separated mothers.
Algeria
Lawyers strike against continuing political pressure
The Algerian bar association has organized a nationwide strike by lawyers in protest against continuing political
pressure, arbitrary arrests of demonstrators and the constitutional referendum which does not meet the demands
of the protesting population.
1Armenia / Azerbaijan
Battles over Nagorno-Karabakh escalate
The violent clashes between Armenia and Azerbaijan in the Nagorno-Karabakh region have been continuing since
27 September 2020. Fighting in the South Caucasus region is mainly concentrated around the capital of Nagorno-
Karabakh, Stepanakert (about 55,000 inhabitants). The local authorities say that the city was attacked with rockets
on 4 October 2020 and was left without electricity after the Azerbaijani attacks hit a power supply facility. Already
on 2 October, the army of Azerbaijan had destroyed several buildings in the city by heavy artillery fire. Inhabitants
sought refuge in cellars and shelters to escape the attacks or left the city partly by bus.
The Azerbaijani ministry of defence has stated that the armed forces of Nagorno-Karabakh, supported by Armenia,
have attacked the 335,000-inhabitant city of Ganja, the second largest city in Azerbaijan, located about 100 km
north of Stepanakert. While Armenia has denied allegations of an attack, the authorities in Nagorno-Karabakh have
stated that their forces had destroyed a military airport in Ganja and that from now on, bases in other Azerbaijani
cities would also be targeted. Meanwhile, the fierce fighting is reported to have claimed several hundred lives on
both sides.
Background
The South Caucasus region lies at the interface between Russian and Turkish spheres of influence. Azerbaijan faces
accusations of having started the battles over Nagorno-Karabakh, employing high-ranking Turkish officers and
thousands of Islamist fighters from the war zones in Syria and Libya as mercenaries in the fight against the Nagorno-
Karabakh Armenians. Turkey has repeatedly stressed its support for Azerbaijan, but has not yet confirmed direct
involvement in the fighting. At the beginning of the fights around Nagorno-Karabakh, Turkish President Erdoğan
had promised to support the Turkic-speaking brother people of Azerbaijan ‘with all means and with all heart’. Given
that majority-Christian Armenia is allied with Russia and mostly Muslim Azerbaijan is supported by Turkey, the
conflict threatens to spread beyond the region.
Belarus
Continuing protests against President Lukashenko
Last weekend some 100,000 people gathered in Minsk and other cities to demonstrate against President Alexander
Lukashenko and to call for the release of political prisoners. This marked the eighth consecutive weekend of
protests against the President. Again, protesters were arrested by security forces. On 2 October 2020, the
authorities withdrew the accreditation of all foreign journalists with immediate effect, thus restricting independent
reporting from the country.
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Two dead in clashes between migrants in north-west Bosnia
According to current media reports, two Pakistani migrants were killed and ten were seriously injured in clashes
between Pakistani and Afghan migrant groups in the north-western Bosnian town of Bihac on 30 September 2020.
The police in the canton of Una-Sana, to which Bihac belongs, says that the fight between the rival migrant groups
started behind the cantonal hospital where some migrants had set up an informal settlement serving as transit
point for a route to the Croatian border. In agreement with the public prosecutor's office, the interior ministry has
confirmed that a murder investigation is underway. Media reports say that the riots are a further sign that the
Bosnian authorities are struggling with a growing migrant crisis.
China
Hong Kong: Arrest of protesters
On China's bank holiday (1 October 2020), hundreds of people protested in the Causeway Bay district, despite a
police ban, against the arrest of twelve members of the democracy movement who had been detained by the
2Chinese coast guard in August 2020 while attempting to escape to Taiwan (see BN of 31 August 2020). Police say
that at least 86 people were arrested.
Colombia
More children recruited by armed groups
In connection with the COVID-19 pandemic, children are increasingly being recruited by Colombian armed groups,
media say referring to a report published on 2 October 2020 by the children’s rights organization Save the Children.
Due to the closure of schools and other care facilities, children have become an easier target. In the first six months
of the year, the coalition against the involvement of children and young people in the armed conflict in Colombia
(COALICO) registered 190 cases of recruitment and use of children by armed groups. i.e. 38 more cases compared
to the same period of the previous year.
Ex-FARC commanders take responsibility for killings
Three leaders of the Fuerza Alternativa Revolucionaria del Común, a party also abbreviated as FARC and the
successor to the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia - Ejército del Pueblo (FARC-EP), have taken
responsibility on behalf of the former FARC-EP leadership for six murders committed between 1987 and 2002, the
Colombian Special Justice for Peace (JEP) stated on 3 October 2020. Besides, FARC has offered assistance to clarify
the crimes, the Justice for Peace said. The respective letter, which was received on 30 September 2020, was signed
by Carlos Lozada, Senator and former FARC Commander, and others. Lozada was one of the negotiators of the
peace agreement reached between the FARC-EP and the Colombian government in November 2016. In a recent
statement, former FARC leaders described the guerrilla organization’s earlier kidnapping practices as a serious
mistake and apologized to the victims and their families (see BN of 21 September 2020).
DR Congo
10 years after UN report: call for end of impunity
A decade after the publication of a landmark United Nations (UN) report, a call for an end to impunity in the DRC
was launched by Amnesty International (AI), Human Rights Watch (HRW) and other human rights organizations
including local ones. The 2010 "UN Mapping Report" lists 617 alleged violent incidents in the DRC between 1993
and 2003. In particular, there are allegations of genocide against Congolese Hutus and Hutus who had fled Rwanda
in 1996-1997. So far, substantial investigations have only been carried out after 1 July 2012 within the jurisdiction
of the International Criminal Court. Denis Mukwege, well-known doctor and Co-Nobel Peace Prize winner of 2018,
had spoken out in favour of prosecuting the crimes. For this, he has recently received death threats. Until May 2020,
he had been under the protection of UN blue helmets.
Ghana
Members of separatist group in detention after assault
On 25 September 2020, supporters of the separatist group Western Togoland Restoration Front (WTRF) raided two
police stations in Juapong village in the North Tongu District of Volta Region. They captured several police officers
and firearms and engaged in a firefight with the police. One person was killed in the incident. In addition to the
attack, the group took a coordinated action to set up roadblocks along access roads to the Volta Region. 31
suspected separatists were arrested. A court in Accra decided on 28 September 2020 that they remain in custody.
Apart from the WTRF, other groups have recently demanded independence from Ghana of a region called Western
Togoland, located in eastern Ghana along the border with Togo and including the Volta region. Linguistically and
culturally, its approximately four million inhabitants are close to their Togolese neighbours.
3Iran
COVID-19 pandemic
On 1 October 2020, the ministry of health registered 211 deaths and 3,825 new infections in a 24-hour period. This
brings the total number of corona victims to 26,380 and the number of new infections detected to more than
460,000, a ministry spokeswoman said on state television. Health experts have called for immediate curfews.
However, President Rohani does not want to further aggravate the country’s acute economic crisis with lockdowns.
Nevertheless, restrictions were put into force in Tehran on 3 October 2020, imposing the closure of all leisure
facilities, educational institutions and even mosques until 9 October 2020. According to the Iranian corona crisis
staff, there are no longer any hospital beds for corona patients due to the sharp increase in new infections.
Temporary release of French-Iranian scientist
Fariba Adelkhah, a French Islamic scholar who is also holding Iranian citizenship and who has been detained in
Tehran's Evin prison since June 2019, was temporarily released from prison, media reports say. According to her
lawyer, she is with her family in Tehran and has to war an electronic anklet. In May 2020, she had been sentenced
to six years for conspiracy against national security. The French government had criticised the sentence as politically
motivated.
Iraq
Security operations against IS fighters
Iraqi security forces continue to carry out military operations against IS positions. Iraqi sources report that during
Operation Al-Jazirah Lions on 1 October 2020, three IS fighters were killed northwest of Baghdad; also,
ammunition, rocket launchers and other equipment were seized.
On 2 October, Iraqi security forces captured two IS fighters in Baghdad.
On 3 October, Iraqi security forces captured at least 25 suspected IS fighters in Nineveh province. In Diyala
province, at least two IS fighters were killed and several hiding places were destroyed.
Demonstrations on the anniversary of anti-government protests
On 1 October 2020, one year after the beginning of a protest wave against the government, demonstrations were
held in Baghdad, Basra, Dhi Qar, Muthanna, Maysan, Wasit and Kirkuk.
Many of the protesters expressed their frustration that their demands went unmet. Their main demands were for a
new government, early elections, political reforms, the fight against corruption and the prosecution of those
responsible for the deaths of demonstrators. So far, however, the only step taken was the formation of a new
government. Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kazemi has announced new elections for June 2021.
Overall, the protests have changed over the summer. Now, there are very few demonstrations held concerning
politics. Mostly, they relate to economic issues such as jobs and the non-payment of civil servants by the
government.
Spiritual Yazidi leader died
On 1 October 2020, the spiritual leader of the Yazidi, Baba Sheikh, died at the age of 87 in a hospital in Erbil
(Kurdistan-Iraq), where he had been admitted because of kidney and heart problems.
Kosovo
Arrest of police officers for various offences
According to a BBC report on 19 September 2020, at least ten border police officers were arrested during a raid to
close illegal casinos in the village of Karachevo on the border with Serbia. Apparently, this was the largest operation
of its kind ever conducted in Kosovo. Twelve illegal casinos were destroyed and slot machines confiscated. In total,
at least 35 people were arrested on suspicion of gambling, prostitution and human trafficking, arms and drugs, the
local prosecutor stated. In March 2019, the government had banned all gambling for ten years because of its links
4to organised crime. Betting, particularly in sport, seems to have become very popular in Kosovo in recent years. As
far as apparent, Albanian-language media have reported on the raid with reference to the BBC only, if at all.
Lebanon
111 counties and municipalities under lockdown again
Following the explosion in the port of Beirut on 4 August 2020, the number of corona cases has increased rapidly
from less than 200 per day to over 1,200 per day (as of 3 October 2020). Now, a new lockdown has been imposed
in large parts of the country. However, a general lockdown is rejected by all major political and civil forces, as the
economic situation simply does not allow this, since it would mean almost certainly that the supply of basic goods
can no longer be guaranteed.
The economic crisis is fuelled by the combination of the port disaster, capital transfer controls, the public debt crisis
and the COVID-19 pandemic. After several weeks of temporary stabilisation, the exchange rate of the Lebanese
pound against the dollar has fallen to 9,000 to 1 on the black market. The exchange rate officially guaranteed by
the Lebanese Central Bank, but which is limited to very small areas and inaccessible to most Lebanese, is 1,500:1.
For exchange offices, the rate is around 3,800:1, but even this is limited to small amounts of money.
Morocco
COVID-19 pandemic
Since 1 October 2020, a negative PCR test (PCR: polymerase chain reaction) dated 72 hours prior to arrival is
sufficient for entry into Morocco. The more complex antibody test previously required is no longer necessary. The
other entry arrangements set up to contain the pandemic remain in place.
Nigeria
UN Human Rights Office criticises death sentence of a singer
According to recent media reports, UN human rights activists have called on the Nigerian authorities to release a
singer sentenced to death. To impose the death penalty for artistic expression or for sharing a song on the internet
is a blatant violation of international human rights, experts of the UN Human Rights Office said in a statement
published on 28 September 2020. In August, a 22-year-old musician was sentenced to death for blasphemy in the
Nigerian state of Kano (see BN of 17 August 2020). According to media reports citing the state censorship authority,
he had sung a song insulting the prophet Mohammed. He had sent the song around via WhatsApp. Kano (northern
Nigeria) is one of the states where Sharia law is practised.
Somalia
Attack in Mogadishu
On 1 October 2020, a high-ranking secret service officer of the Somali National Intelligence and Security Agency
(NISA) was killed by an al-Shabaab suicide bomber on a street in Mogadishu. Several people were injured in the
incident.
Syria
Fighting in the South
Both local social media and the opposition war monitoring group Syrian Observatory for Human Rights have
reported serious clashes on 20 September 2020 between pro-government militias and local Druze fighters in
Suweida province.
Apparently, fighting began near the village of al-Qrayya when members of the so-called Fifth Corps (originally an
amalgamation of militias that was later incorporated into the structures of the Syrian army) occupied agricultural
5land belonging to the local mostly-Druze population. In turn, the Druze attacked the government troops. More
than a dozen people are reported killed on each side; dozens were injured.
During the Syrian war, the Druze minority had been largely loyal to the Assad government, mainly in view of the
growing danger from oppositional Islamists which threatened the religious minority. Recently however, anti-
government protests have taken place in Suweida after a deterioration of the population's living conditions due to
the ongoing economic and currency crisis; it is felt that the government is structurally disadvantaging the region.
Damascus airport back in operation
On 1 October 2020 civil aviation was resumed for the first time in Damascus since the outbreak of the COVID-19
pandemic. International flight connections of the national air carrier Syrian Airlines are available to Cairo, Beirut,
Khartoum and Kuwait, among others. Commercial flights had been suspended on 25 March 2020.
Togo
Prime Minister appointed
On 28 September 2020, President Faure Gnassingbé appointed 60-year-old Victoire Tomégah-Dogbé as Prime
Minister. She is the first woman in this office in Togo. Previously, she had served as Gnassingbé's chief of staff and
Minister for Basic Development and Youth, among others. Gnassingbé had won the presidential election in February
2020. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the expected resignation of the previous government under Prime Minister
Komi Selom Klassou had been postponed to 25 September 2020.
Tunisia
COVID-19 pandemic: authorities step up measures
On 4 October 2020, the authorities announced their intention to ban all gatherings and to reduce the working hours
of public sector employees. This is to prevent the rapid spread of the coronavirus and to avoid a consequent
overburdening of the health system. The number of people infected with COVID-19 rose from just under 1,000 at
the end of June 2020 to more than 20,000 infected at the end of September. Prime Minister Hichem Mechichi stated
that regional lockdowns could be implemented if necessary; however, a national lockdown should be avoided so
as not to further weaken the country's ailing economy.
Turkey
New law to regulate social media
On 1 October 2020, a new social media law containing very restrictive measures was implemented in Turkey. It
obliges platform operators with more than one million users per day to have a representative in Turkey and to
remove within 48 hours any content that has been classified as illegal by the courts. Failure to do so can lead to
significant penalties, including fines of up to approximately five million dollars and restrictions on bandwidth for
the services of the platform in question. Human rights groups questioning the independence of many Turkish courts
are very critical of the new law.
Several HDP members detained
In the judicial follow-up to the investigation of protests against the Turkish army's inactivity during the IS attack
on Kobane in 2014, the court ordered the detention of 117 people, including several high-ranking members of the
pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP: Halkların Demokratik Partisi).
6Venezuela
Nationwide protests
Demonstrations have been staged in at least 19 of the 23 states. The protests are now mainly addressing the dire
living conditions. Among other forms, so-called carcerolazos are organised, with household appliances, such as
pots and pans, being used to make noise in the homes. Hyperinflation and the economic crisis have led to a massive
imbalance between the official minimum wage and the cost of living. The population is largely dependent on
government food distribution schemes, remittances from Venezuelans living abroad and on private savings. The
situation is aggravated by the COVID-19 pandemic which, despite very low official figures, has already taken a hold
of the country. On 2 October 2020, Venezuela received the first shipment of the Russian experimental Sputnik V
vaccine. On 5 October, President Maduro announced that both his son and his sister had already received the
vaccine.
Yemen
Exchange of prisoners between the government and STC
On 1 October 2020, the Yemeni government and the Southern Transitional Council (STC) reportedly exchanged
more than 200 prisoners captured during military clashes in 2019. The government released 178 prisoners in
Shabwah Governorate, and the STC released 28 prisoners in Aden. Also, the Yemeni government and the Houthi
rebels have recently agreed on a prisoner exchange with more than 1,000 prisoners, scheduled to take place in mid-
October 2020 (see BN of 28 September 2020).
Group 62 – Information Centre for Asylum and Migration
Briefing Notes
BN-Redaktion@bamf.bund.de
7You can also read
