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Exclusive: ‘Safe routes’ for refugees so slow that toddler died waiting

Iraqi refugees who have spent years stuck in Turkey tell openDemocracy they understand why some turn to smugglers

Exclusive: ‘Safe routes’ for refugees so slow that toddler died waiting
Fadi (pictured) could not get the care he needed.
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Supposedly safe, legal asylum routes that Suella Braverman claims are open to refugees are so inadequate that a toddler died after waiting years to be resettled, openDemocracy has learnt.

The government has sought to justify harsh new laws that would prevent people from claiming asylum in the UK by arguing that it already provides a safe and legal route for refugees referred by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

But speaking from Turkey, some of those accepted onto the scheme say they feel abandoned after waiting more than a decade for resettlement.