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Syrians: arriving from Turkey and selection in Lebanon

03/04/2015
On Monday, 22 resettled Syrian refugees made the journey from Turkey to Belgium.  In the meantime, the selection of Syrian refugees in Lebanon is still ongoing.

At the end of 2014, the CGRS selected 75 Syrian refugees in Turkey for resettlement in Belgium. In view of the difficulties in obtaining the necessary travel documents for leaving Turkish territory, the transfer of these people to Belgium was delayed. 28 arrived in December 2014 and 6 arrived in February 2015.The group of 22 people which arrived on Monday 30 March comprises five families. The refugees are spread over the two Fedasil reception centres that organise the initial reception and the first integration in Belgium: the centres in Sint-Truiden and Pondrôme. Their move to a private accommodation provided by a Public Social Welfare Centre is planned for the end of April.The last Syrian refugees from the 2014 quota will arrive soon.Selection in LebanonThe Office of the Commissioner General for Refugees and Stateless Persons was recently in Lebanon in order to select refugees for resettlement in 2015. During this first mission, the CGRS analysed 38 proposals from the UNHCR, representing a total of 124 people. These are refugees who have fled the conflict in Syria and are staying in cities or in settlements.The Belgian federal government had decided to double the resettlement quota in 2015: 300 refugees will be selected for resettlement in 2015, including 225 Syrians.