US, Australia asked to take in some migrants

BUDAPEST

Hungary’s populist prime minister called on the US, Australia, Israel and “rich Arab nations” to take in some of the migrants flowing into Europe, while likening the influx to an “army”.

“It’s not fair, that the US doesn’t take in any, or only 10,000 to 15,000 refugees,” Viktor Orban told radio station Kossuth on Friday.

“It’s not fair that Israel doesn’t take any at all, that Australia doesn’t take any at all, that the rich Arab countries are dithering,” he said.

“Everyone looks to Europe, because someone sent the refugees out in this direction.”

The comments by Orban, whose country has received almost 300,000 migrants this year, most of them just passing through en route to western Europe, follow his appeal at the United Nations General Assembly this week for “global quotas”.

Last month, US Secretary of State John Kerry said the United States would in 2016 take in 85,000 refugees from across the world, including 10,000 from Syria.

Orban, whose stance has regularly raised hackles in Europe, also said that “at least 80 per cent of the immigrants are young men. The group looks more like a young army than refugees.”

According to figures released by the UN refugee agency, almost 390,000 people have arrived in Europe by sea this year, only two thirds of whom are male.

Orban also said the “majority” of those arriving in Europe were “uneducated and only speak Arabic” and insisted that “economic migrants” not be allowed to pick and choose their destination.

REFUGEE INFLUX

Last month, Hungary sealed its southern border with Serbia, diverting the flow of migrants through Croatia and the western Balkans.

But Zagreb has been transporting them to its northeastern frontier with Hungary, which Orban has said he also intends to seal off.

At the same time, the Croatian sun has given way to rain and the temperature has dropped, but refugees and migrants continue to stream into the country, making officials and charities scramble to prepare for wintry conditions.

More than 90,000 migrants, many of them fleeing conflict in the Middle East, have transited through Croatia since mid-September after EU member Hungary closed its border with Serbia. This led them to find a new route.

“It’s starting to get really cold. For someone of my origin, it’s not easy!” said Syrian student Ahmad, 22, dressed in a hooded jacket and waterproof cape.

He laughs it off, but next to him others shiver on the muddy road in Bapska, an eastern village in Croatia that is the first point of entry for travellers seeking better lives in northern Europe, especially Germany.