Off the wire
• Portugal 3 Hungary 3 - final result  • More Europe, better Europe needed: Greek PM  • SA inflation decelerates to 6.1 percent in May  • One Nepali national injured in Kabul bomb attack dies, 6 others airlifted to New Delhi  • Spanish stock market index rises 0.40 pct, closes at 8,702 points  • Austria sees 11 pct increase in road fatalities in 2015  • British FTSE 100 rises 0.56 pct on Wednesday  • Chinese firms participate in water and building show in Ghana  • U.S. cargo ship completes 5th space station resupply mission  • Iceland 1 Austria 1 - latest  
You are here: 　 Home

37 more refugees arrive in Spain

Xinhua, June 23, 2016 Adjust font size:

The Spanish Interior Ministry informs that 37 refugees from Syria and Iraq arrived here on Wednesday.

The 36 Syrians and one Iraqi flew into Madrid's Adolfo Suarez-Barajas Airport at midday and will be housed in different parts of the country, with 2 in Guadalajara, 4 in Barcelona, 7 in Madrid, 6 in Vizcaya, 11 in Valencia and 7 in the northern region of Asturias.

The group, which is made up of 13 men, 7 women and 17 children, arrived from Greece and brings the total number of refugees who have now arrived in Spain to 171 since Spain said it would house 15,000 refugees from Syria and Iraq as part of the EU agreement reached in September 2015.

Of the 171 arrivals to date, 40 have come from refugee camps in Italy, 121 from Greece and 10 from Turkey, although further arrivals are expected in the near future.

Spain has been criticized by aid organizations for its slowness in taking in refugees, although the Spanish Interior Ministry has explained that delays have been caused by the bureaucracy involved in processing petitions and security needs. Endit