Iraqi Ministry of Migration warns citizens about fake ‘asylum’ services 

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The Iraqi Ministry of Migration and Displaced warned the country’s citizens on Friday not to “fall victims” to travel companies that claim to provide asylum and immigration services, state media reported. 

The ministry said that Iraqis could be deceived by travel agencies operating “under the banner of asylum and immigration,” Karim al-Nouri, the ministry’s deputy minister, warned in a statement on Friday, according to the state-owned Iraqi News Agency. 

The recent immigration wave of mostly Iraqi migrants to Eastern European borders caused tensions between the European Union and Belarus. Minsk stands accused of using the desperate asylum seekers as a “pressure card” against the EU. 

Iraqi authorities halted air traffic to Belarus and prepared repatriation flights for those stranded citizens on the Polish-Belarusian border. 

So far, nearly 4,000 immigrants have voluntarily returned to the country on these flights. 

The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), in cooperation with the Iraqi federal government and the EU, has taken strict measures against those agencies and individuals that facilitate human smuggling to European nations. 

The Iraqi ministry said it does not have the exact number of its citizens who have travelled to Europe’s borders. It has urged citizens not to take illegal routes to try and enter an EU country. It also called on the EU not to forcibly repatriate Iraqi citizens on its borders, according to the statement. 

Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani has repeatedly said that his government would do what is necessary to curb this dangerous and illegal migration that has endangered the safety of Kurds and Iraqis.

In November, French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian expressed his country’s appreciation to the KRG for its efforts to combat this illegal migration and human smuggling.