Under the new state of emergency, the Latvian border guards brought dozens of migrants back to Belarus overnight, a state designed to prevent the European Union from saying that it was orchestrated by Minsk.
At dawn on Wednesday (August 11th), about 30 migrants-including women and young children-passed through the fields of northern Belarus for one night and arrived at the border. They lit a bonfire to keep warm.
The resistance witnessed by Reuters occurred a few hours after Latvia declared a state of emergency to prevent illegal immigrants, mainly from the Middle East, Africa, and Asia, from entering the EU countries from Belarus.
A young immigrant in a black hoodie claimed to be Lava and said the group were Kurds. They flew from Iraq to Istanbul, Turkey, and then to Minsk, the capital of Belarus.
“We want to stay here and live in Latvia. Please help us because (the weather) is too cold”, the children were sick, he said in a text message sent from the border near Robeznieki in Latvia.
Lieutenant Colonel Ilmars Aispurs, the local security commander in Latvia, confirmed that Iraqis had been turned away and told that if they wanted to apply for asylum, they would go to the nearest official border crossing 30 kilometers (20 miles) away.
The postponement is a response to the accelerated wave of migrants arriving at the borders of Lithuania, Latvia and Poland. They accused Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko of “weaponizing” immigrants in order to put pressure on the European Union to reverse the sanctions.
Since the presidential election last year, the international pressure on Belarus has intensified, with opponents claiming that the election was rigged and suppressing street protests after voting.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Belarus did not respond to Reuters’ request for comment.
‘PRental help! Baby is too cold!
At around 3 in the morning, Latvian guards stopped the migrants in Robeznieki, because the group only carried small bags and backpacks across a field.
As the immigrants refused to retreat, the confrontation between the two sides lasted for several hours. One of them shouted in English: “Please help! The baby is so cold!”
A 31-year-old woman wrote her name in Arabic as Lilouz and said she was from Dohuk, Iraq. She told Reuters that she and her five children walked for six hours all night. Sitting on the damp grass with other immigrants, she was obviously tired and scared.
Lava asked for help and UNICEF’s phone number in his text message. He said that Latvian guards yelled at the migrants, demanded that they return to Belarus, and frightened them with patrol dogs.
Reuters saw no evidence of violence against immigrants.
About 10 hours after their arrival, Lava sent a message saying that they had returned to a village in Belarus to rest and eat.
A spokesperson for the UN refugee agency in Northern Europe and the Baltic Sea told Reuters: “We are deeply concerned about the postponement of reports.”
UNHCR is sending a delegation to Latvia to discuss the situation and ensure that its response complies with its international obligations and European laws,” the spokesperson said.
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The Latvian Ministry of Internal Affairs stated that 59 migrants have been turned away since the emergency situation was agreed, but more people have been allowed to enter and be taken to the immigration center.
Latvian guards told Reuters that recently arrived migrants told them that they had spent a few nights in a hotel in Minsk before being driven to the Latvian border and were then told to go in a certain direction.
The guard said that some people were told they would eventually reach Germany and paid thousands of dollars for the voyage.
In the first four nights, security guards patrolling the 36.5-kilometer stretch of the 170-kilometer border between Latvia and Belarus stated that they intercepted about 200 people. They were transferred to the Mucheneki Immigration Center near the capital Riga.
The Ministry of the Interior said last week that so far this year, 4,026 people have crossed the border illegally into Lithuania from Belarus. The country has a population of 2.8 million, compared to 74 in 2020.
A spokesperson for the European Commission said that if migrants try to cross the border in an unauthorized place, it is understandable to redirect people to official border crossings.
“These measures are acceptable, as long as … the basic rights of the persons concerned to be protected from refoulement (refoulement) and to obtain asylum procedures are respected at all times,” said a spokesperson for the EU executive.
Latvian Prime Minister Kris Yanis Kalins said on Wednesday that EU countries must prove to Belarus that sending immigrants into the EU is meaningless.
“Through this hybrid war against the EU, the Belarusian side will only increase tensions. According to the Baltic News Agency (BNS), Kalins told the local TV station that we will unite and remain calm, but we will take very determined action. .
