Hundreds of refugees from the North Caucasus republic of Chechnya this week mounted a small, and perhaps fruitless, protest on the Polish border with Belarus, seeking political asylum in the European Union from persecution at home.
The demonstration, a sit-in in the transit zone between the Belarusian and Polish borders, was an attempt to return media attention to asylum seekers from Chechnya and elsewhere in the North Caucasus, a problem which in recent years has been dwarfed by the tides of refugees traveling to Europe from Syria and elsewhere in the Middle East.
As recently as 2013, the second largest number of applications for political asylum in Europe came from Russia, primarily from residents of the North Caucasus region complaining of rights abuses (40,000 Russian citizens sought asylum that year). And according to a report this week from Human Rights Watch, violations like punitive house-burnings and forced disappearances in Chechnya persist against critics of the regime.
You've reached your daily free article limit.
Subscribe and support our veteran writing staff to continue reading.
Hundreds of refugees from the North Caucasus republic of Chechnya this week mounted a small, and perhaps fruitless, protest on the Polish border with Belarus, seeking political asylum in the European Union from persecution at home.
The demonstration, a sit-in in the transit zone between the Belarusian and Polish borders, was an attempt to return media attention to asylum seekers from Chechnya and elsewhere in the North Caucasus, a problem which in recent years has been dwarfed by the tides of refugees traveling to Europe from Syria and elsewhere in the Middle East.
As recently as 2013, the second largest number of applications for political asylum in Europe came from Russia, primarily from residents of the North Caucasus region complaining of rights abuses (40,000 Russian citizens sought asylum that year). And according to a report this week from Human Rights Watch, violations like punitive house-burnings and forced disappearances in Chechnya persist against critics of the regime.
Read More- Washington Post
Image courtesy of AP
Luigi Mangione, Suspect in UnitedHealthcare CEO Murder, Held in Custody in PA
Inside Delta Force: America’s Most Elite Special Mission Unit
Navy SEALs To Rally Behind Pete Hegseth in a March on Washington
Head Coast Guard Chaplain Removed Due To Knowledge of Sexual Misconduct
What Assad’s Downfall Means for Syria and the Middle East
Join SOFREP for insider access and analysis.
TRY 14 DAYS FREEAlready a subscriber? Log In
COMMENTS
You must become a subscriber or login to view or post comments on this article.