After the recent Paris attacks, many British and international papers have linked the attacks to the refugee crisis, claiming that terrorists are travelling to western Europe by posing as refugees. But is this true? Where did this idea come from and how will it effect the migrant crisis?
The fact that seems to contradict these headlines is that some of the attackers in Paris were French. Much like the Lee Rigby attack in London and the Boston Marathon Bombing, some of the attackers weren’t actually from Iraq or Syria, where ISIS is based. However, the attackers M al-Mahmod*, Bilal Hadfi and Ahmad al-Mohammad are thought to have come to Europe with refugees.
This is a little tenuous though. After Ahman al-Mohammad detonated his suicide vest outside of the Stade de France, a Syrian passport was found, which was thought to be his. However authorities later said this was a fake passport.
Records from the border control of Leros, a Greek island that many refugees pass through, suggested Ahman al-Mohammad arrived there on the 3rd October and was fingerprinted and photographed. Leros authorities were reported as saying they simply do not have the resources to screen all the migrants effectively or even check whether passports are genuine. So this lends to the theory that al-Mohammad came to Europe as a refugee. The attacker M al-Mahmod is suspected of travelling with him.
Bilal Hadfi had gone to fight in Syria alongside IS, but the Belgian government were not aware he returned. This again could mean he travelled to Europe similarly to Admad al-Mohammad. However he may he returned in a different way.
Samy Amimour was one of the suicide bombers who blew himself up at the Batclan. In 2014, French newspaper Le Monde published an account of a father who travelled to Syria to convince his son to leave IS and return to France. Fake names were used in the original article, but it has been updated to reveal that the son in question was Amimour.
So does this mean that there is a link between refugees and terrorists? Should we be cautious of refugees?
The short answer is no. Over one million people have been displaced by the situation in Syria and most refugees wish to escape IS and terrorism.
Making it harder for refugees to emigrate into Europe may cause some to join ISIS as they would have to return to Syria and be left with no choice.
A stricter system could solve the issue, as the official who allowed Ahman al-Momhammad into Greece said they don’t have the roscources to throughly check all migrants.
Canada has said it will not take single, male refugees as a precaution. Poland has said they will not take any refugees. Republicans in America are calling for the U.S to stop taking in refugees.
Whether their actions are justified is questionable, either way the attacks have changed the face refugee crisis significantly.
Photos by: HonestReporting, Leonora Enking
*The attackers real name has not been released by authorities. The name comes from the BBC.