UK ready to accept 20,000 Syrian refugees
The British government has secured enough places to resettle 20,000 Syrian refugees over the course of next four years, Home Secretary Amber Rudd says.
Rudd made the announcement on Sunday, adding that 118 local authorities have agreed to provide the places to the refugees, who have fled their war-torn homeland that has been grappling with foreign-backed militancy since March 2011.
“We are on track and delivering our commitment to help the most vulnerable Syrians displaced by the conflict,” the minister said.
To fulfill the pledge, London has designed the Vulnerable Persons Relocation Scheme, under which the government will pay £8,500 per refugee in the first year for housing, healthcare and other purposes. The figure will be cut down to £1,000 by the fifth year.
The British government would also spend £10 million in language tuition fees to help refugees learn English, the Home Office noted.
The language program provides all adults arriving in the UK with an extra 12 hours a week of tuition, for six months.
“We've got to integrate them to help them rebuild their lives. In our long experience of supporting refugees from many different countries the critical issue is their ability to speak English,” Rudd added.
The pledge to resettle 20,000 refugees by 2020 was made by former Prime Minister David Cameron who stepped down after the EU referendum in June.
Europe is facing an unprecedented influx of refugees who are fleeing conflict-ridden zones in Africa and the Middle East, particularly Syria.
Many blame the UK and other major Western powers for the exodus and view them as major supporters of terrorism and war in the violence-hit regions, where Takfiri terrorist groups such as Daesh (ISIL) have been wreaking havoc over the past years.
United Nations Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura estimates that over 400,000 people have been killed in the Syrian conflict. The deadly war has also displaced millions of people.
The UK Department for International Development (DFID), a British government institution responsible for administering foreign spending, has revealed that about £5.1 million of British aid for Syria may have ended up in the hands of Daesh.
British authorities also say that at least 800 UK nationals have traveled to Syria and Iraq to fight alongside the Takfiri terror groups operating there.
UK Special Forces have been spotted in Syria while assisting militants who fight the government of President Bashar al-Assad.
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