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IMMIGRATION

Danes publish refugee ‘apology’ ads in Lebanon

A private Danish group succeeded in raising enough money to publish ads of its own in the same Lebanese newspapers that ran the government's message about asylum policy changes.

Danes publish refugee ‘apology’ ads in Lebanon
The news ads say "sorry" for the originals. Photo: PeopleReachingOut
A group called People Reaching Out has published ads in the same four Lebanese newspapers that carried the Danish government’s much-discussed information campaign about asylum rules. 
 
The new advertisements, which were first announced last month, were replicas of the originals, but with a message telling readers that many in Denmark disagree with the government’s official line. 
 
 
In red ink, the words “Official statement from the Danish government” are written above the original text. Below the listed asylum policy changes is a red heart and the following message:
 
“A statement from people to people: Sorry for the hostility towards refugees expressed here. As ordinary Danes we wish to extend our sympathy and compassion to anyone feeling war and despair. #PeopleReachingOut.”
 
Photo: PeopleReachingOut
 
Speaking to public broadcaster DR, one of the people behind the new ads said that the Lebanese newspapers initially didn’t understand the intention of the new ads, but then quickly warmed to the idea. 
 
“They said: ‘Now we can recognize Denmark again’. In one of the newspapers, we were also able to get a better placement [than the government’s original],” Frederik Preisler said. 
 
Preisler said he was surprised by how many different Danes donated to the counter advertisements, which cost nearly $25,000. 
 
The government's original ads are currently under investigation by the parliamentary ombudsman on the grounds that they were misleading.

IMMIGRATION

France ‘will not welcome migrants’ from Lampedusa: interior minister

France "will not welcome migrants" from the island, Gérald Darmanin has insisted

France 'will not welcome migrants' from Lampedusa: interior minister

France will not welcome any migrants coming from Italy’s Lampedusa, interior minister Gérald Darmanin has said after the Mediterranean island saw record numbers of arrivals.

Some 8,500 people arrived on Lampedusa on 199 boats between Monday and Wednesday last week, according to the UN’s International Organisation for
Migration, prompting European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen to travel there Sunday to announce an emergency action plan.

According to Darmanin, Paris told Italy it was “ready to help them return people to countries with which we have good diplomatic relations”, giving the
example of Ivory Coast and Senegal.

But France “will not welcome migrants” from the island, he said, speaking on French television on Tuesday evening.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has called on Italy’s EU partners to share more of the responsibility.

The recent arrivals on Lampedusa equal more than the whole population of the tiny Italian island.

The mass movement has stoked the immigration debate in France, where political parties in the country’s hung parliament are wrangling over a draft law governing new arrivals.

France is expected to face a call from Pope Francis for greater tolerance towards migrants later this week during a high-profile visit to Mediterranean city Marseille, where the pontiff will meet President Emmanuel Macron and celebrate mass before tens of thousands in a stadium.

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