Dear Editor,
The tragedy of asylum seekers who die by drowning in search of a better life must be a cause for concern for the international community. Over four hundred persons, including children lost their lives by drowning already for this year. The vast majority of those who died were Syrians who out of desperation sacrificed their own lives and those of their children by trying to cross the murky waters separating Turkey and Greece.
The so-called ‘greener pastures’ in Western Europe is turning out to be a mirage for the tens of thousands who managed to make it there, especially in countries such as France and Germany where xenophobia is on the rise. Unless there is a political solution to the conflict in Syria the migrant crisis will continue which has now become not only a Syrian problem but a European problem as well.
The European Union seems divided on how to deal with the migrant crisis. Turkey, which is the home of millions of displaced Syrian refugees and from where the majority of refugees seek to enter Europe, is unable to cope, despite billions of dollars in aid from the European Union to manage the crisis.
There is only one solution to the problem and that is to restore peace and stability in Syria and other conflict-torn countries in the Middle East and Afghanistan.
The United Nations and the bigger powers have a moral and a diplomatic responsibility to bring the crisis to an end, and the sooner the better.
Yours faithfully,
Hydar Ally
