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Refugee crisis in Europe

Belavia stops accepting Iraqis, Syrians and Yemenis on flights from Turkey to Belarus

Earlier, given the migration crisis on the Belarusian-Polish border, Turkish Airlines will not sell tickets for flights to Belarus to the residents of Iraq, Syria and Yemen

© Stringer/TASS

MINSK, November 12. /TASS/. Belavia, the Belarusian national airline, has stopped taking on board citizens of Iraq, Syria and Yemen from Turkey to Belarus.

"In accordance with the decision of the competent Turkish authorities, starting November 12, 2021, the citizens of Iraq, Syria and Yemen will not be accepted to be transported on flights from Turkey to Belarus," the press service’s message reads.

Earlier, given the migration crisis on the Belarusian-Polish border, Turkish Airlines will not sell tickets for flights to Belarus to the residents of Iraq, Syria and Yemen. Exceptions will be made only for passengers with diplomatic passports.

The migration crisis on the Belarusian borders with Latvia, Lithuania and Poland, where migrants began to flock in since the beginning of this year, went into high gear on November 8. Several thousand people approached the Polish border on the Belarusian side and tried to cross into Poland. In an attempt to storm the border they broke a barbed wire fence. The EU countries have blamed Minsk for the intentional escalation of the crisis and called for more sanctions. Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said that in this situation the responsibility rested squarely on the Western countries, whose policies had forced people to flee from war.

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