UNHCR: Members need to stop turning away asylum-seekers

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said it is "greatly concerned" some countries are turning away asylum-seekers, including those from Syria. "UNHCR is greatly concerned over reports of some [European Union] countries placing barriers to entry or forcibly returning asylum-seekers," the agency said in a release Friday. "UNHCR is calling, globally as well as in the European Union, for a shift away from border protection to protection of people," the release said. "If practices to prevent asylum-seekers from accessing territory and procedures are taking place, UNHCR calls on states to cease them immediately. Push-backs and prevention of entry can put asylum-seekers at further risk and expose them to additional trauma." Specifically, the UNHCR said it is investigating media reports of Bulgarian border control officials turning away 100 migrants during the weekend, as well as similar reports of 150 Syrian asylum-seekers being pushed back from Greece to Turkey, the release said. "UNHCR is calling for a global moratorium on any return of Syrians to neighboring countries," the release said. "This would represent a concrete gesture of solidarity with these countries that currently host over 2.2 million Syrian refugees."