Finland tightens criteria for Iraqi asylum seekers
None
Finland expects to get fewer Iraqi asylum seekers after it re-assessed the country's security and decided people will not qualify simply because they come from Iraq.
Most of the 23,000 asylum seekers that have arrived in Finland this year are Iraqis, encouraged by the country's relatively broad asylum criteria and an existing Iraqi community.
Under Finland's standard for granting asylum, people must have a "well-founded fear" of persecution in their own country to be granted asylum. Judging whether they qualify will now depend on individual circumstances, not just the fact that they come from Iraq, the Finnish Immigration Service said on Tuesday.
Security has improved in the province of Babylon and the city of Kirkuk, the immigration service said, and "while the security situation in Baghdad is still problematic, all people who come from Baghdad cannot be considered to run a personal risk of falling victim to violence."
