Two Ukrainians died at Amsterdam airport
Two Ukrainian citizens died in a fire at the international airport Schiphol (Amsterdam, Netherlands), Deputy Head of the Press Service of the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry Dmytro Svistkov told Interfax-Ukraine, citing the Ukrainian embassy in the Netherlands.
According to the embassy, as a result of the fire on the night of October 26-27, 11 people died, including two Ukrainian citizens, and 15 were injured. The fire broke out after midnight in an area where people detained at the airport were being held. At the time of the fire, more than 350 people were held there. These are mostly drug couriers, as well as people who for some reason have been refused entry to the Netherlands. The cause of the fire has not yet been established.
To establish the details of the tragedy, the Ukrainian embassy in the Netherlands maintains constant contact with an operational group of the Dutch Ministry of Justice, as foreign diplomats are not allowed to the fire site until the end of investigative actions.
The Dutch Ministry of Justice set up a separate telephone line (dialing from Ukraine: 8-10-31-79-363-90-30), through which information can be obtained about close relatives or acquaintances who may have become victims of the fire. The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry also operates a hotline (tel.: (044) 238-16-57), through which Ukrainian citizens can obtain information about the possible presence of close and relatives among those affected by the fire. The case is under the control of the Ukrainian embassy in the Netherlands and the Department of Consular Service of the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry.
Spain introduces special system of control over the entry of foreigners
By the end of the year, Spain will begin operating a special system for controlling citizens of countries outside the European Union who wish to enter Spain. According to RIA Novosti, this system was developed in fulfillment of recommendations proposed by the Spanish parliament commission on the terrorist attacks of March 11, 2004 in Madrid.
As Spanish Interior Minister José Antonio Alonso announced in parliament, the system is being created for more effective tracking of potential terrorists and persons involved in organized crime. In particular, the head of the Interior Ministry said that already this week Spanish airlines and other transport organizations will be obliged to transfer lists of passengers crossing the Spanish border to the Interior Ministry. Spain's two largest airlines - Iberia and Spanair - already provide such information. Implementation of these measures, Alonso emphasized, "puts Spain on a par with Great Britain and other countries that already carry out similar control."
In addition, the minister said, over the outgoing year spending on maintaining the level of antiterrorist readiness in Spain reached €350 million, and in 2006 it will increase by another €18 million. More than a thousand law enforcement officers have been mobilized to fight terrorism - believed to be the largest contingent in Europe.
Spain also proposed that the EU create a joint European police corps that could be used in the event of large-scale terrorist attacks against certain EU countries.
Syria strengthens control over entry into the country
Syrian authorities have tightened control over entry into the country, fearing the infiltration of terrorists. This is reported by RIA Novosti with reference to the official Syrian agency SANA.
According to the agency, the Interior Ministry distributed instructions for border police providing for increased control over the entry of foreigners aged 18 to 30. The ministry instructs its units at the borders to return to the country from which he arrived anyone whose identity raised suspicion during the check.
The new measures will not affect diplomats, official guests, representatives of commercial organizations, students of Syrian universities, as well as those who have a residence permit in Syria.
"These measures are caused by the desire to preserve stability and security in Syria," the Interior Ministry clarified. During the year, Syrian authorities reported several armed clashes on the territory of the country involving foreign extremists.
Recently, the United States and a number of politicians in Iraq have repeatedly accused Syria of not taking sufficient measures to prevent the penetration of foreign militants into Iraq across the shared border. In turn, the Syrian authorities claim that they have significantly strengthened the protection of the border with Iraq after the start of military operations in that country.
Illegal migration in Lithuania intensifies
The International Organization for Migration states that the results of a nationwide study on illegal migration in Lithuania confirm existing suspicions - with entry into the European Union, smuggling of "live goods" has only intensified.
The nationwide study of illegal migration was conducted in Lithuania for the first time. The results are discouraging: every year, 2,000 women and girls, some as young as 14, are taken from Lithuania to work in the sex industry of Western Europe. About a quarter of them end up in Great Britain.
The Lithuanian women taken out come from different regions of Lithuania, but most often represent the poorest and least educated segments of the population. Most of them are unemployed, half have children.
The study relies on information collected by non-governmental organizations in conversations with those who returned to Lithuania - about 200 people. So 90% of those taken out of Lithuania remain outside the survey. However, the organization hopes that now that the focus is on statistics within the whole country, efforts to combat smuggling of "live goods" will be increased.
459.5 million people live in the European Union
The population of the European Union countries as of January 1, 2005, reached 459.5 million people. According to the EU statistical office Eurostat, it increased by 2.3 million people in 2004, of which 1.9 million due to migration.
The highest population growth rates in the EU were recorded in Cyprus (25.4 per thousand people), Ireland (20), and Spain (16.2). The population declined the most in Lithuania (minus 6 people per thousand), Latvia (-5.5), Estonia (-3), Hungary (-1.9), Germany and Poland (each -0.4).
The EU population is almost 1.5 times greater than the population of the United States, where about 294 million people currently live.