France Asylum

Britain's new law allowing the deportation of undocumented asylum seekers to Rwanda is sparking fear among migrants who have come to France in the hope of crossing the Channel to England.

At least five people, including a child, died in an attempt to cross the English Channel from France, hours after Britain passed a bill to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda to try to deter the dangerous crossings.

Though he had spent the previous year at an asylum in France, Vincent van Gogh arrived in the village of Auvers-sur-Oise, just north of Paris, in an optimistic mood. It was here, in 1890, that he would spend the last few months of his life.

Twenty-five Indian passengers who had stayed behind seeking asylum in France after their flight from the UAE was grounded last week over suspicion of human trafficking before being allowed to take off for India have now been freed,

A Russian editor who protested Moscow's military action in Ukraine during a state TV news broadcast said Thursday she is quitting her job but not accepting France's asylum offer, calling herself "a patriot".

The former inmate behind a video leak showing alleged rape and torture inside a Russian prison said he could no longer keep the explosive revelations to himself, speaking to AFP from France where he is now seeking asylum.

Asia Bibi, the Pakistani Christian woman who spent years on death row after a 2010 conviction of blasphemy, said Monday that she was seeking political asylum from the French government.

Whistleblower Edward Snowden, living in Russia since leaking a trove of classified documents showing the scope of post-9/11 US government surveillance, wants to claim asylum in France, according to an interview published Saturday.

India has asked UK, France and Belgium to help track down fugitive jeweler Nirav Modi and restrict his movements.

Ecuador's new President Lenin Moreno criticized Julian Assange as a "hacker" but stressed his country would continue providing asylum to the WikiLeaks founder fleeing international arrest.

Russian artist Pyotr Pavlensky, who once memorably nailed his scrotum to Red Square to denounce state power, has won political asylum in France, his lawyer told AFP on Thursday.

German authorities are struggling to process hundreds of thousands of asylum applications, the head of the country's refugee office admitted today,even though a record influx of migrants was finally slowing.

France, which has come under fire for not fully banning smacking, must "explicitly prohibit" all forms of corporal punishment of children, a UN report said on Thursday, criticising its treatment of Roma and asylum-seeking minors.

France and Germany are "firmly convinced" of the need to reduce the flow of migrants into Europe, they wrote in a joint letter to the EU Commission seen by AFP today.

Italy's Foreign Minister has scathingly dismissed criticism from France and Germany over its handling of the tens of thousands of migrants arriving on its southern shores.

Britain's new law allowing the deportation of undocumented asylum seekers to Rwanda is sparking fear among migrants who have come to France in the hope of crossing the Channel to England.

At least five people, including a child, died in an attempt to cross the English Channel from France, hours after Britain passed a bill to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda to try to deter the dangerous crossings.

Though he had spent the previous year at an asylum in France, Vincent van Gogh arrived in the village of Auvers-sur-Oise, just north of Paris, in an optimistic mood. It was here, in 1890, that he would spend the last few months of his life.

Twenty-five Indian passengers who had stayed behind seeking asylum in France after their flight from the UAE was grounded last week over suspicion of human trafficking before being allowed to take off for India have now been freed,

A Russian editor who protested Moscow's military action in Ukraine during a state TV news broadcast said Thursday she is quitting her job but not accepting France's asylum offer, calling herself "a patriot".

The former inmate behind a video leak showing alleged rape and torture inside a Russian prison said he could no longer keep the explosive revelations to himself, speaking to AFP from France where he is now seeking asylum.

Asia Bibi, the Pakistani Christian woman who spent years on death row after a 2010 conviction of blasphemy, said Monday that she was seeking political asylum from the French government.

Whistleblower Edward Snowden, living in Russia since leaking a trove of classified documents showing the scope of post-9/11 US government surveillance, wants to claim asylum in France, according to an interview published Saturday.

India has asked UK, France and Belgium to help track down fugitive jeweler Nirav Modi and restrict his movements.

Ecuador's new President Lenin Moreno criticized Julian Assange as a "hacker" but stressed his country would continue providing asylum to the WikiLeaks founder fleeing international arrest.

Russian artist Pyotr Pavlensky, who once memorably nailed his scrotum to Red Square to denounce state power, has won political asylum in France, his lawyer told AFP on Thursday.

German authorities are struggling to process hundreds of thousands of asylum applications, the head of the country's refugee office admitted today,even though a record influx of migrants was finally slowing.

France, which has come under fire for not fully banning smacking, must "explicitly prohibit" all forms of corporal punishment of children, a UN report said on Thursday, criticising its treatment of Roma and asylum-seeking minors.

France and Germany are "firmly convinced" of the need to reduce the flow of migrants into Europe, they wrote in a joint letter to the EU Commission seen by AFP today.

Italy's Foreign Minister has scathingly dismissed criticism from France and Germany over its handling of the tens of thousands of migrants arriving on its southern shores.