Belgium's state-run migrant shelters are saturated
A lack of available spots in state-run shelters left asylum seekers Fazal, Ukunde and Pascal with nowhere to go. NGO-operated shelters offer them refuge for now.
refugee shelters
Germany: Man sentenced to life in prison for refugee center attack
A 32-year-old man who stabbed several people at a center for asylum seekers at Lake Constance last year has been sentenced to life in jail. The attack left six people seriously wounded and a 38-year-old Syrian died at the scene.
Germany: 11 injured in fire at asylum seeker center
Police in eastern Germany are investigating a fire at an accommodation facility for asylum seekers that injured eight children and three adults. A technical cause can be ruled out, police said.
Berlin: Former airport expands capacity to house war refugees
A temporary refugee shelter at a former airport in Berlin, Germany, will be expanded to accommodate 3,600 Ukrainians. Many municipalities in Germany have had to create makeshift accommodation, as refugee arrivals have spiked this year.
Austria: Authorities set up tents for asylum seekers
Migrant rights groups have slammed Austria's decision to use temporary tents to shelter asylum seekers as winter approaches. Austrian authorities, however, said the country is facing a dire shortage of beds in government housing.
Ireland: Calls to end controversial 'Direct Provision' system for asylum seekers
A new coalition of leading not-for-profit organizations in Ireland is calling for an end to Ireland's controversial Direct Provision asylum reception system. Some years ago the government had committed to ending the system by 2024, yet it still has a long way to go to ensure it delivers on these promises, according to the coalition.
'A ticking time bomb’: Cypriot MPs shocked by visit to Pournara migrants' shelter
Cypriot MPs have voiced strong criticism of conditions at the Pournara emergency shelter for migrants, west of Nicosia. Significant inter-community violence has already broken out in the overcrowded facility.
Woman and toddler die in fire at German asylum shelter
A 31-year-old woman and a two-year-old child have died after a fire broke out at a shelter for asylum seekers in central Germany on Sunday evening.
Italy: Migrants evicted from occupied building near French border
In northern Italy, authorities have evicted migrants from a shelter set up by activists. The occupied building had been turned into a center to assist migrants trying to cross the border to France.
Finding the positive: Migrants and COVID-19
2020 has been a difficult year for many people the world over. A global health pandemic, economic problems and even more people displaced than before were just some of the challenges we all faced. But to try and spread a bit of cheer as the year comes to a close, InfoMigrants decided to look back at some of the positive stories we featured. Here’s a few focusing on how migrants helped their communities pull through the dark times.
Berlin builds dozens of new refugee homes — despite falling numbers
Germany's capital has approved plans to build new refugee homes as coronavirus and housing shortage bite. Some refugee homes are struggling to maintain hygiene guidelines.
Lockdown hero: Coping with coronavirus in a Berlin refugee home
Refugee home director Katie Griggs is one of many people whose jobs have been made extra challenging by the pandemic. How do you protect a diverse community when its members all share bathrooms and kitchens?