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MET WITH GERMAN faces so friendly that it brought some to tears, over 6,000 migrants and refugees have reached Munich
Travellers predominantly from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan who had been told for days they could not leave Hungary were scooped from roadsides and Budapest’s central train station and placed on overnight buses, driven to the frontier with Austria and allowed to walk across as a new day dawned.
They were met with unexpected hospitality featuring free high-speed trains, seemingly bottomless boxes of supplies, and well-wishers offering candy for everyone and cuddly toys for the children in mothers’ arms. Even adults absorbed the sudden welcome with a look of wonderment as Germans and Austrians made clear that they had reached a land that just might become a home.
“I’m very glad to be in Germany I hope that I find here a much better life. I want to work,” said Homam Shehade, a 37-year-old Syrian shopkeeper who spent 25 days on the road. He left behind his parents, a brother, wife, a 7-year-old boy and a 2 ½-year-old girl.
He hopes to bring them all to Germany Until then, he said:
“I hope that God protects them from the planes and bombs. My shop was bombed and my house was bombed.”
BBC News (World) / Twitter"Welcome to Germany" - People applaud & greet migrants as they arrive in Munich http://t.co/3Wk9ryrzib http://t.co/0rZqjFSFef
— BBC News (World) (@BBCWorld) September 5, 2015
As the migrants departed Hungary, leaders took a few final swipes at their departing guests.
Prime Minister Viktor Orban told reporters that Hungary drove the migrants to the border only because they were posing a public menace, particularly by snarling traffic and rail lines west of Budapest.
Thomas van Linge / Twitter#RefugeeCrisis: Syrian refugee boy wrapped himself in a #EU flag as he arrived in #Munich :) #RefugeesWelcome pic.twitter.com/ZwIrvA4qcX
— Thomas van Linge (@ThomasVLinge) September 6, 2015
Orban said the people being taken by Germany mostly come “from regions that are not ravaged by war. They just want to live the kind of life that we have. And I understand that, but this is impossible. If we let everybody in, it’s going to destroy Europe.”
The contrast could not have been greater in Vienna’s central train station. When around 400 asylum seekers arrived on the morning’s first border train, charity workers offered food, water and packages of hygiene products for men and women.
Austrian onlookers cheered the migrants’ arrival, with many shouting “Welcome!” in both German and Arabic. One Austrian woman pulled from her handbag a pair of children’s rubber rain boots and handed them to a Middle Eastern woman carrying a small boy.
Sami Al Halbi, a 28-year-old veterinarian from Hama in Syria, said he fled to avoid mandatory military service. “They asked me to join the army. I am educated. For years I’ve been holding a pen. I do not want to hold a weapon,” he said. “We all want to have a better future.”
It got better as travellers continued west on more trains, some of them specially provided for the migrants.As Austria’s government noted, virtually none of those coming intended to seek asylum before reaching Germany the eurozone powerhouse that has pledged to aid Syrians fleeing from their 4-year-old civil war. Germany expects to receive a staggering 800,000 asylum seekers this year.
In Munich’s central station, the first arrivals from Hungary received cheering and applause. Many who had endured nights sleeping on crowded concrete floors at Budapest’s Keleti station appeared disoriented as Germans approached them holding trays of food. The youngest brightened up as teddy bears were offered as gifts.
“We are giving a warm welcome to these people today,” said Simone Hilgers, spokeswoman for Upper Bavaria government agencies tasked with providing the migrants immediate support.
“We realize it’s going to be a big challenge but everybody, the authorities and ordinary citizens, are pulling together.”
A total of about 6,000 people had come through Munich by Saturday evening, Hilgers said. All were given food and drink, and most were housed in temporary accommodation.
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Speaking of which, I see the NOC have paid Hickeys fees and he’s coming home but we still can’t comment!!
Nor can you comment on the GSOC/sexual assault complaint where no charges have been made yet. The charging is the normal point for cutting off comments.
Surprised the coppers didn’t catch these fellas given how many checkpoints they’ve been deploying in Clane lately
No Garda info on descriptions, characteristics, clothing, size or accents. These things would be helpful in any public appeal, or maybe they’re not really that bothered.
They don’t give full descriptions because these men would be seen on every street corner. I’m sure anyone who saw an armed robbery and a distinctive Skoda will be able to give their own descriptions. This way Gardai will know if the witness is legit!
Gerry, being seen in every street corner, means too much follow up work?. Surely these lads were lurking around at some stage before the robbery, maybe they called into other shops in the area looking for easy targets. They wouldn’t have brought the car into some shops and afterwards are certainly not going to be hanging on to the car. First thing I would do is provide a description to other shopkeepers for their protection and also for them to check their videos for these guys scoping thing out. Back in the days of actual policing, descriptions were given out. We are now in the days of just incident recording.
So you think Gardai should tell the public and potential witnesses every detail of this crime. That would be a barristers dream when they get witnesses in the witness box and be able to say that the Gardai led the witnesses into making statements. Gardai hold back certain information for a reason. You should wander down to the local district court some day. There are thousands of people prosecuted on a daily basis by Gardai for Criminal offences so much so that the courts struggle to keep up and it takes months and years to get through the courts. Even take a look at the news. Today alone I saw 4 articles about criminals being locked up for serious and guess what all of these prosecutions were brought about by Garda investigating crime. So either you are misinformed or you just have a chip on your shoulder!
No Gerry, no chip here, I support the Gardai, that doesn’t mean I have to agree with the withholding of suspect descriptions. They’ve always been a useful community protection tool when dangerous people are at large, which is the case here. This is a strange policy development I’ve noticed in recent times and I can’t see the logic behind it.
It may be useful in conserving scarce resources for other functions such as traffic, it may or may not have an effect in the courtroom. There may even be anti bigotry reasons in some cases. These are issue that the Garda management and the prosecution people should sort out themselves without lazily resorting to deteriorating the public policing and protection function. Public protection should always override organisational convenience.
Garage is 2 minute walk Garda station. There Harley ever there.
Clane is an awful shi*hole
Nope.
Now why would you offer that nugget, what don’t you like?
Which petrol station was it? The one on the barberstown side town?
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