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Buhari’s remarks about young Nigerians’ work ethic stirs social media storm

President Muhammadu Buhari has drawn criticism from social media and the opposition alike for saying many young Nigerians think they need “do nothing” to enjoy free homes, hospitals and schooling because they live in an oil-rich country. Buhari, who said last week he will run for a second term in elections next February, made the comments in London where he …

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EU granted 500,000 people asylum protection in 2017

EU member states as well as Norway, Iceland and Switzerland granted protection status to 538,000 asylum seekers in 2017, according to new data released by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union, on Thursday. Another 24,000 refugees were resettled in the region last year. Last year’s asylum seeker figures represent a 25% drop from 2016, when 710,000 asylum seekers …

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German migration official investigated for granting asylum in exchange for bribes

A German migration official is suspected of having granted asylum to some 1,200 migrants in exchange for bribes. Germany’s migration agency has been under intense scrutiny since the arrival of over million refugees in 2015. A former official of Germany’s Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) is under investigation over allegations that she, along with four others, accepted bribes …

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Germany to accept 10,000 refugees from North Africa, Middle East

The German government has committed to accepting refugees under a program to resettle people considered particularly vulnerable. Controls of Germany’s border to Austria look set to be extended for another six months. EU Commissioner for Refugees Dimitris Avramopoulos said Germany would be accepting more than 10,000 refugees from North Africa and the Middle East. He added that the EU Commission …

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Gunmen kidnap German in Nigeria

Five armed men kidnapped a German national and killed a policeman in northern Nigeria, police said on Monday. Gunmen on motorcycles opened fire on a vehicle carrying workers to a construction site run by construction company Dantata & Sawoe in Kano city, abducting the German national working for the firm and killing a police escort, said police spokesman Magaji Musa …

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Where asylum-seekers can receive free legal advice in Germany

Assessing legal service in the pursuit of their application is a major challenge for asylum-seekers because they cannot afford the required fees. An initiative works to help refugees overcome this challenge. Refugee law clinics across Germany offer legal advice to refugees. This is a free service and most of the volunteers are university law students who have specialized in asylum …

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Berlin streets to be renamed after African heroes

After more than ten years of agitations, new names for streets in Berlin’s African Quarter linked to the brutal German colonial past in Africa have been found. The representatives of the three major parties on the district council of Wedding (Greens, SPD and Left) have agreed to rename Petersallee, Lüderitzstraße and Nachtigalplatz in honour of African liberation fighters. Lüderitzstraße was …

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Thousands rally in Berlin over rising housing rents

Berliners are calling on the city government to address skyrocketing housing costs as lawmakers dispute recent reports that the German capital has had the biggest price hikes in the world. Elizabeth Schumacher reports. Thousands of people defied the rain in the German capital, Berlin, on Saturday to protest the rising cost of housing amid rampant gentrification. Berlin has the fastest-rising property …

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South Africa bids Winnie Madikizela-Mandela heroic farewell

Politicians, ordinary people, supermodels and heads of state from all over the world came to give testimony to Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, whose impact was felt across the world, at a heroic farewell on Saturday. Zikhona Masala reports from Johannesburg. It was a funeral service that will forever be on the minds and hearts of those that attended and watched. Thousands of …

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What unaccompanied under-aged refugees in Germany should know

Unaccompanied minors travelling to Europe for protection pose a significant challenge to the authorities. Aasim Saleem of InfoMigrants takes a closer look at the protection mechanism and its shortcomings for underage migrants in Germany. A person is registered as an “unaccompanied minor refugee” if he or she is under the age of 18 and has fled without his or her …

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