VACANCY: Director
The European Council on Refugees and Exiles (ECRE) is looking to recruit a new director. The new director will lead ECRE’s litigation, advocacy and communication efforts and contribute to the alliance’s strategic development within a dynamic and challenging...
ECRE Legal Note: The Cessation of International Protection and Review of Protection Statuses in Europe
ECRE has published a legal note on cessation of international protection and review of international protection statuses in Europe. It is a new version of a similar legal note that was published in 2021, updated to include recent case law and analysis in relation to...
NORDIC COUNTRIES: Finland maintains closure of border with Russia ― Proposals to deter asylum applications and encourage voluntary returns in Sweden ― Norway resumes forced returns to Lebanon
The Finnish government has announced that it will keep its border with Russia closed until further notice. The Swedish government has restated its plans to increase financial incentives to encourage voluntary returns and is considering limiting the right to legal aid...
MEDITERRANEAN: Greece under renewed pressure to end pushbacks ― Cyprus accused of failing to protect vulnerable groups from exploitation ― First deportation from controversial Italian centre in Albania ― IOM reports almost 25,000 deaths in Central Mediterranean since 2014
The Council of Europe (CoE) Commissioner for Human Rights has demanded that Greece adopts a zero-tolerance approach to pushbacks and strengthens border safeguards. A report by the CoE Group of Experts on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings (GRETA) has...
EDITORIAL: “But who will pick our olives?” – Demographic decline and refugee inclusion
By Catherine Woollard Week after week, newspaper articles and research publications sound the alarm on the impact of Europe’s demographic crisis. Last week, a piece put the spotlight on Poland, arguing that this is not just an economic question but one of security....
ECRE Policy Note: Reception Conditions: Protecting Women and Girls in EU Asylum Systems
ECRE has published a policy note which examines how the 2024 recast Reception Conditions Directive can support more effective and harmonised implementation of gender-sensitive reception across the EU. It draws on a wide range of sources, including the Asylum...
GERMANY: New government takes office; immediately orders police to turn away most undocumented people at border ― Far right party labelled ‘extremist’ by intelligence agency ― Proposal to let Syrian refugees visit home ― Rise in attacks against people seeking asylum in Berlin ― Court approves deportations to Greece
Friedrich Merz has become chancellor after securing a majority in the Bundestag after an unprecedented two rounds of voting. The new government has announced that it will refuse entry to most people seeking asylum with immediate effect. The domestic intelligence...
AIDA Country Report on Spain – Update on 2024
The updated AIDA Country Report on Spain provides a detailed overview on legislative and practice-related developments in asylum procedures, reception conditions, detention of asylum applicants and content of international protection in 2024. It is accompanied by an...