Events and Developments for Displaced People (October 6, 2021: October 12, 2024)

الأحداث والتطورات الخاصة بالأشخاص المتنقلين (6 أكتوبر - 12 أكتوبر 2024)

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Displaced People: Any person, or people, who migrates from one place to another for relatively long periods of time and is in need of basic standards of protection. Among displaced persons, you may find: political refugees, asylum seekers, uprooted people, undocumented individuals, climate refugees, diasporic people, forced migrants, and more.

 

Egypt

Egypt deports Sudanese man, Egyptian citizen in Gaza publishes plea for repatriation, Sudanese girl killed at Egyptian border, thousands of Sudanese leave Egypt to return to Sudan despite ongoing proxy war

 

Egypt Deports Sudanese Man: 

The Official Gazette published on Wednesday, in issue 222, a decision by the Ministry of Interior to deport a Sudanese national from the country. Article 1 of Decision No. 1766 of 2024 states that Ali Nour Zuhair Ali Nour (of Sudanese nationality – born 12/16/1972) will be deported from the country for reasons of public interest. 

 

Egyptian Citizen in Gaza Publishes Plea for Repatriation:

In other recent developments, the Egyptian citizen (Mahmoud Gamal Abdel-Moneim Abdel-Latif Seif al-Nasr) published a video appeal, in which he explained that he has been stuck in the Gaza Strip since the commencement of the Zionist occupation’s assaults on October 7th 2023. He cannot return to Egypt to his family as the Egyptian authorities refuse to let him cross into Egypt because his name was not included on the transit lists. Despite his mother’s attempts in Egypt to engage with the competent authorities so that they can return an Egyptian citizen to his country, the authorities’ procrastination continued for a year until the crossing was closed due to the occupation army forces controlling the Palestinian side of the crossing. As a result, Seif al-Nasr remains trapped in Gaza until now. 

 

Sudanese Girl Killed at Egyptian Border:

Along the southern border of Egypt, conditions worsen for Sudanese migrants crossing into Egypt, as a child was killed by bandits near the border between Sudan and Egypt according to her uncle. Eyewitnesses also confirmed to Al-Arabiya.net that the funeral of the deceased child, Suhair Aref, took place in the city of Atbara on Monday. 

 

The child left with her father, mother and two siblings for Egypt. As the vehicle traveled deeper into the barren desert, the driver noticed a group of armed bandits standing far away on the road. In an attempt to save himself and the passengers, the driver immediately turned around to return the vehicle, but the bandits fired a barrage of bullets at the back of the vehicle. One bullet hit the father’s knee, another inflicted superficial wounds on him, and a fatal bullet was lodged into Suhair’s abdomen.

 

Thousands of Sudanese Leave Egypt to Return to Sudan Despite Ongoing Proxy War:

The Refugee Platform in Egypt published an investigation in conjunction with The New Humanitarian about secret detention centers in Egypt, the dangers of the journey, and the high risks Sudanese people face due to the intensifying of restrictions at the Egyptian-Sudanese border.

 

Based on a report conducted by Al Jazeera Net, according to activists in Aswan’s testimonies, hundreds of Sudanese people who could not afford the cost of migration via smugglers turned to the Egyptian army at Abu Simbel instead; where they received great services in return. The Egyptian army provided buses for transportation and were committed to securing the Sudanese people’s migration journey until the Ashkit crossing in Wadi Halfa. The Egyptian army provided these facilities for only 200 Egyptian pounds, about 4 American dollars, per Sudanese person, while the smugglers were demanding approximately 5,000 Egyptian pounds, about 100 American dollars, per Sudanese person.

 

In a report published this month, the UNHCR, citing the Egyptian government, stated that: since the ongoing proxy war in Sudan began as of April 2023, 1.2 million Sudanese people have sought refuge in Egypt. This record is the first update to the Egyptian government’s estimate of the number of migrants since March 2024.

 

With an increasing number of these Sudanese nationals wishing to return to Sudan, a collective of Sudanese youth and activists in Egypt called for the organization of an initiative called ‘Return to One Nation of a Kind’, which was established to help Sudanese families wishing to return to Sudan by providing the cost of travel tickets and facilitating transportation, specifically for those who entered Egypt illegally.

 

Palestine

UN investigators have accused the State of Israel of attempting to destroy Gaza’s healthcare system: North Gaza is undergoing one of the most violent, contemporary genocidal campaigns, and a new assault on a shelter leaves 26 dead

 

The United Nations investigators on Thursday accused the State of Israel of deliberately targeting Gaza’s healthcare infrastructure while killing and torturing medical workers, stating that the occupation has committed ‘crimes against humanity.’ The investigators continued to state that ‘Israel executed a coordinated plan of destroying Gaza’s healthcare system as part of a wider attack on Gaza’. The United Nations International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territories and the State of Israel said in a statement. The commission continued by adding that the State of Israel has committed ‘war crimes and the crime against humanity of extermination through sustained and deliberate attacks on medical personnel and facilities.’ 

 

The three-member commission was established by the United Nations Human Rights Council in May 2021 to investigate possible violations of international law in the State of Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT). The commission published its second report since the occupation erupted on October 7th 2023, which is now a year prior to the State of Israel’s ongoing offensive targeting the Gaza Strip.

 

This report also highlights the mistreatment of Palestinian detainees in the State of Israel and the hostages in Gaza, accusing Israeli factions of torture and sexual and gender-based violence against Palestinians. 

 

The Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor warned of an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe as the Israeli occupation sealed off the Jabalia camp and Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip for the fourth consecutive day (statement dated October 8th), while intensifying their genocidal crimes against Palestinians in these areas including committing massacres, deliberate killings, and large-scale forced displacement. 

 

The Monitor called on the international community, led by the United Nations, to intervene immediately and decisively to save tens of thousands of residents who are being subjected to one of the most violent campaigns of genocide that ever occurred in the Gaza Strip.

 

In a press release, the Monitor stated that occupation forces escalated their siege on Jabalia camp and adjacent eastern and northern neighborhoods, such as Tal al-Zaatar, al-Sikka, Beit Hanoun and Beit Lahiya, in addition to positioning themselves in the western part of the camp as far as the Jaffa Cemetery and al-Tawam Junction. 

 

The Israeli occupation’s army has continued to invade large parts of northern Gaza since Saturday evening, October 5th, amid raids, firebombings, and artillery shelling. These assaults include dropping bombs over residential areas of homes and their inhabitants that result in dozens of deaths and injuries. 

 

The Monitor received preliminary information that the Israeli occupation’s army executed five Palestinians, including a woman, a man and his son, while they were trying to flee Jabalia camp, despite the fact that they were raising white flags. 

 

In another pressing development, the Israeli occupation’s army enacted a complete evacuation of the Kamal Adwan Hospital located in the Beit Lahia subdivision located in the north of Gaza.

 

The Monitor warned that the Israeli occupation’s army is systematically attempting to empty northern Gaza while targeting its residents to force them to flee to the south, while issuing several of the same displacement orders and dropping leaflets detailing said goal.  

 

The Monitor emphasized that tracking the Israeli occupation’s military operation demonstrates that the operation has no military purpose or necessity. Rather, the operation exists to complete the destruction of the remaining buildings in northern Gaza as a fourth incursion. Throughout the previous three incursions, more than 85% of the buildings in northern Gaza had been destroyed. Additionally, during the previous three incursions, civilians were targeted and forced to evacuate the area thereby turning northern Gaza into a fully militarized zone. 

 

The Monitor called on the United Nations and the international community to intervene immediately to save tens of thousands of northern Gaza’s residents, to stop the horrific ethnic cleansing being carried out against them, and to put an end to the genocidal war crimes committed by Israel for the second consecutive year. The Israeli occupation army also prevents diesel fuel from reaching hospitals in the northern Gaza Strip, threatening thousands of lives. 

 

In a distress call launched by the Government Media Center in the Gaza Strip, the call stated that the Israeli occupation’s army forced civilians and displaced people to evacuate a number of displacement facilities and shelter centers. The Israeli occupation army then bombed and directly targeted the 17,000 residents taking refuge, as well as approached them in military vehicles to enact the incoming raids and crimes committed against them. This tactic was similar to the massacres and brutal bloodshed committed by the Israeli occupation’s army in the past year. 

 

Another new war crime committed by the Israeli occupation’s army, the Government Media Center reported that the occupation bombed the Rufaida school for displaced people in Deir al-Balah, killing 26 martyrs and wounding more than 92 students and teachers, most of them children and women.

 

The center’s statement proceeds to illustrate that the Israeli occupation’s army was aware that this school housed thousands of displaced children and women, who were originally displaced from their homes after their civilian neighborhoods were bombed by the Israeli occupation’s army. The Israeli occupation’s army timed the dropping of their bomb during school recess, where these children and women moved around collectively to acquire their daily meals. 

 

This massacre raises the number of shelters and displacement facilities bombed by the Israeli occupation’s army to 190, where this amount of infrastructure housed hundreds of thousands of people displaced by the genocide waged by the Israeli occupation’s army against the Palestinian people on Palestinian land. 

Syria

Three Syrians returning from Lebanon arrested, the number of Syrian martyrs in Lebanon increases to 191, overcrowded classrooms disrupt education in northern Syrian camps

 

Three Syrians Returning from Lebanon Arrested:

Military Intelligence Division personnel belonging to the regime forces arrested three Syrians at a checkpoint in the town of Jdeidet Artouz, west of Rif Dimashq governorate, while they were returning from Lebanon on October 9th to escape the Israeli occupation’s bombardment. They were taken to an unknown location without knowing what would become of them or the charges against them, according to a report released by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

On October 10th, the Observatory noted that Military Intelligence Division personnel belonging to the regime forces arrested a 34-year-old Syrian citizen near the Dabousieh village border crossing between Syria and Lebanon within the Homs countryside. The 34-year-old Syrian was returning from Lebanon to escape Israeli airstrikes, and while entering Syrian territory he was taken to a security agency without knowing the outcome for himself or the reason for his arrest.

The Number of Syrian Martyrs in Lebanon Increases to 191:

The Syrian Observatory also documented the martyrdom of 15 Syrians, including a man, his wife and 4 of their children, as a result of the Israeli occupation army’s attacks on various areas in Lebanon during the past 4 days. These attacks also killed two Syrian citizens who died after sustaining fatal wounds as a result of the Israeli occupation army’s strikes on Beirut and the Bekaa Valley. 

The number of Syrian displaced people killed in Lebanon as a result of the Israeli occupation’s increasingly violent and continuous escalations on Lebanese territory since September 21st, as documented by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, has risen to 191 people including 34 women and 50 children. 

Overcrowded Classrooms Disrupt Education in Northern Syrian Camps:

A report conducted by the newspaper The New Arab indicated that displaced people in camps in northwestern Syria face issues enrolling their children in camp schools, thus preventing some students from completing their education. This contributes to the phenomenon of academic abandonment, which has become a concern in the region as the education sector suffers from several other crises as well. 

Camp schools are trying to accommodate a large number of students, explains teacher Osama al-Darwish, who works in the camp schools located in the northern countryside of Idlib. The needs of these schools far outweigh their capacities, al-Darwish elaborates. He also states that “We want to do our best however the space is limited and there are 50 students in one class” adding “We can’t take any more. The children are hungry for education, but there is no support from international organizations and there are no solutions to expand schools or create new classrooms.”

There are more than 1,900 camps in the northwestern region of Syria, where 62% of the region does not have schools or any educational facilities according to statistics from the Syrian Response Coordinators.

Fatima al-Saad, a mother of three who lives in al-Rahma camp near the city of al-Dana in northern Idlib, told The New ArabEvery day, I go to the camp’s school administration to inquire about the possibility of enrolling my children in school. But the answer is always: There are still no open spots. I feel helpless in the face of my children’s insistence on going to school. But what can I do? This situation will ruin their future. My eldest daughter used to excel in her school before we were displaced, and now she spends her days without an education.”

On Sunday, The New Arab announced that the Governing Administration of northeastern Syria estimated the number of Syrians arriving to their regional jurisdiction from Lebanon has risen to approximately 18,000. The administration released a statement explaining that the Syrian returnees are either heading to their homes or to their relatives in northern and eastern Syria, while there are shelters for those who have nowhere to go.

The Governing Administration’s Social Affairs Authority in Raqqa also issued a statement on Saturday, confirming that the administration has taken practical steps to receive these returnees by opening shelters in several areas in the northern and eastern regions of Syria. “Many Syrian families have decided to return to their homeland in search of a safe environment and a better standard of living. These families found that only the regions of Northern and Eastern Syria were safe havens. We also encountered the arrival of some Lebanese families fleeing the ongoing attacks on Lebanon. A refuge center was opened in the al-Adnaniyah area in the countryside of Raqqa, which was equipped to ease the burden of travel for displaced people while providing all the basic services of shelter and food for them.” as stated by the Governing Administration.

Lebanon

Iraq opens school center doors for free to internally displaced students from Lebanon, Iraq allocates three billion dinars for displaced Lebanese people, and the Lebanese army recovers two sunken boats off of the Lebanese coast

 

Iraq Opens School Center Doors for Free to Internally Displaced Students from Lebanon: With the influx of large numbers of people displaced to the southern Lebanese city of Sidon due to the Israeli occupation’s ongoing offensive, the need for resources like water has increased. While the city itself has been suffering from a shortage of water for years, the mechanism of pumping water is not readily available to the city for several reasons; the most important of which being the city’s constant power outages.

A large number of internally displaced people are currently living across 21 shelters and schools in the city of Sidon, while others have been able to rent houses or live with relatives throughout Sidon. This has led to a major water crisis, specifically within the shelters, where the need for this vital resource is crucial. 

The scarcity of water in Sidon’s IDP shelters affects physical hygiene, and the cleaning of the centers as well as resident’s clothing. This results in the IDP fearing the spread of diseases amongst themself and their children, who are vulnerable to lice, scabies and other diseases as they are aware that there is no hot water for bathing. 

A Muslim scout leader working at Al-Bizri High School in Sidon, Muhyieddine Hafouda, told The New Arab: “We work as a team of volunteers at the shelter/high school to provide for the needs of our siblings displaced from areas under bombardment in the south, but we struggle due to the major issue of water scarcity, which is not limited to just our center. Naturally, the suffering has increased with the impact of the displacement of large numbers of residents to all the schools/centers.

Within the context of displacement to neighboring countries, private schools in Iraq have opened their doors to receive Lebanese students free of charge, in an initiative by their administrations to alleviate the suffering of Lebanese families displaced by the Israeli occupation’s aggression. So as not to deprive these children of the opportunity for education, amid the continued influx of dozens into the country, the Iraqi Ministry of Education recently directed the facilitation of the acceptance of Lebanese students into Iraqi public schools as well. To assist and simplify the progression of their studies, the General Directorate of Evaluation and Examinations within the ministry issued protocol and instructions to ensure their reception in educational institutions.

The directorate confirmed in a statement that ‘these students are admitted to the schools nearest to their places of residence based on the academic stages they were already in with a written pledge from the student’s guardian attached to their identification documents, if any.’ In addition to this, an official letter circulated throughout the country’s schools states that ‘a general enrollment page was opened for students that does not require them to have school documents for their previous academic stage. And that, if they succeed from the completed stages of primary six, middle three, and secondary six, they are provided with official school documents.’ 

Iraqi Government Allocates Three Billion Dinars for Displaced Lebanese People:

The Iraqi government has also allocated three billion Iraqi dinars to provide support and assistance to Lebanese families who came to Iraq fleeing the Israeli aggression against their country thus far, amidst confirmation that more than 8,000 Lebanese people have arrived in Iraq as of now.

On Tuesday, the Iraqi Council of Ministries held a session chaired by Prime Minister Mohammed Shi’a Al-Sudani, in which the council discussed a number of issues, including support for the Lebanese who sought refuge in Iraq. According to a statement made by the council ‘The meeting discussed the issue of continuing to provide support, relief, and assistance to the displaced Lebanese people. The council approved the allocation of three billion dinars from the emergency reserve to the Iraqi Ministry of Migration and Displacement to provide service to the Lebanese guests arriving in Iraq.’ 

The Lebanese Army Recovers Two Sunken Boats off of the Lebanese Coast:

In another recent development, the Lebanese army announced on Saturday that 98 Syrians and one Lebanese person were rescued while attempting to leave Lebanon illegally after heading towards the Cypriot Islands aboard two boats that sank. The Guidance Director of the Army Command released a statement that describes the ‘naval forces patrol off of Ramkeen Island within the Tripoli Governorate, north of Lebanon, managing to rescue 98 Syrians and one Lebanese on Friday as they were trying to leave Lebanon illegally on two boats headed towards the Cypriot Islands.’ The Guidance Director also stated that the two boats sank without providing any further details.

Local media outlets reported that the two boats suffered a technical failure several miles out at sea, and that the navy pulled them back into Lebanon. Lebanese Red Cross ambulances and relief teams rushed to the scene to treat four injuries on the spot, while disaster teams provided supplies to the survivors. 

Italy

Syrian migrant’s body recovered off of the coast of Lampedusa, Tunisian migrant crushed by truck dies

 

Syrian Migrant’s Body Recovered off of the Coast of Lampedusa: 

The Italian Coast Guard announced on Monday that they had recovered the body of a Syrian migrant who died of suffocation, and rescued 43 people who were with him. According to initial testimonies, the boat had traveled from Sabratha, Libya to Lampedusa, Italy. Some of the migrants informed the coast guard that they were near the island’s shore, after which they were handled by policemen in hotspots.

Local media reported that the boat was seven meters long and that drugs were found on the boat, as well as various medications intended for diabetics. Collecting full testimonies of all the survivors is still ongoing, however there are 43 survivors who are Algerian, Syrian, Eritrean, and Palestinian. The survivors as well as the deceased Syrian person’s body arrived at Favarolo pier in the Imperiacola area after being docked by military patrol boat CP327. Each person paid 6,000 American dollars to reach Europe.

The forensic pathologist who examined the deceased’s body at the morgue of the Cala Pisana cemetery estimated that the Syrian displaced person had died of cardiac arrest about 15 hours before help arrived, possibly due to asphyxiation.

Tunisian Migrant Crushed by Truck Dies:

On the evening of Sunday, October 6th, a migrant from Tunisia was found dead on the Splendid Ferry connecting Halk El Oued, near Tunis, to a port in Sicily. The Tunisian man had been hiding under a truck parked on the ferry to avoid being spotted by authorities, but the truck crushed him when the disembarkation took place, according to the Italian press. Port authorities have opened an investigation to learn more about the circumstances of the tragedy. 

 

Greece

Approximately 230 migrants arrive at Crete from Libya, European court orders Greece to pay compensation to seven minors whose rights were violated in 2020

 

Approximately 230 migrants arrive at Crete from Libya:

Over the weekend, approximately 230 migrants arrived at the Greek island of Crete after a lengthy crossing on six boats, all of which departed from the coast of eastern Libya.

Although the crossing from Libya to Greece takes at least two days of sailing, more and more migrant boats are setting off from the Tobruk Coast towards the coast of southern Greece, specifically Crete and a smaller island named Gavdos.

Although most boats used to head towards the island of Lampedusa off of the coast of Libya, the Italian Coast Guard has recently stepped up patrolling efforts and surveillance monitoring along the central Mediterranean route. As a result, migrants are forcibly subjected to increased safety risks to reach European shores through Greece.

European Court Orders Greece to Pay Compensation to Seven Minors Whose Rights Were Violated in 2020:

In a landmark ruling in favor of migrants, the European Court of Human Rights found that Greece had violated the rights of seven unaccompanied foreign minors at the Samos Island hotspot in 2020. The ruling came on October 3rd, the 11th anniversary of the deadly migrant shipwreck off of the island of Lampedusa

The European Court of Human Rights recognized the case and actually acknowledged that ‘the living conditions in the reception and identification center in Samos Island at that time constituted inhumane and degrading treatment for any individual, regardless of their specific vulnerabilities’ Sekoli said.

The events in question date back to 2020, in a migrant reception center on Samos Island, where the minors in question, who are now 18 years old, were subjected to inhumane and degrading treatment that was a violation of their human rights according to the court’s ruling. This ruling thereby ordered the Greek authorities to pay the displaced teenagers a total of 41,500 euros.

Despite the fact that such a small compensation figure is to be divided amongst seven teenagers, the youths were ‘satisfied with the outcome of justice being served’ Sekouli stated while recalling that her organization was founded on the Greek island of Samos in 2018 ‘to support minors who lived in terror, without any respect for their human rights.’ 

Cyprus

European court orders Cyprus to compensate two Syrian migrants sent back to Lebanon

 

European Court Orders Cyprus to Compensate Two Syrian Migrants Sent Back to Lebanon:

The European Court of Human Rights on Tuesday condemned Cyprus for intercepting two Syrian migrants at sea and then returning them to Lebanon without examining their asylum claim. The court ordered Cyprus to pay the two Syrian displaced people compensation.

The two Syrians, born in 1983 in Idlib located in Northwestern Syria, fled their country, due to the proxy war, for Lebanon in 2016. In Lebanon, the two Syrians lived in refugee camps while fearing they would be sent back to Syria; so they ultimately decided to seek asylum in Cyprus.

In September 2020, the two Syrian displaced people migrated with a smuggler in a boat as part of a group of 30 displaced people. Cypriot authorities intercepted their boat and sent them back to Lebanon.

The applicants appealed to the European Court of Human Rights to complain that they were returned to Lebanon as part of a collective measure that did not consider their asylum application or their particular situation, and without access to an internal solution. 

On Tuesday, the Strasbourg Court ruled in their favor, aftering finding that a violation of Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights was committed. This ruling also pertained to the prohibition of dehumanizing and degrading treatment, which is another violation of Article 4 of Protocol No. 4 (prohibition of collective expulsion of aliens) and another violation of Article 13 on the right to an effective solution.

France

French athletes save 16 young Algerians from drowning in the Strait of Gibraltar

 

French Athletes Save 16 Young Algerians From Drowning in the Strait of Gibraltar:

After sailing adrift for five days, the ‘fortuitous’ passage of a sports vessel on Monday changed the lives of 16 young Algerians hoping to reach Spain through the Strait of Gibraltar. The sports captain Thibault Fauchele Camus and his crew helped the group of young men, but one of them did not survive the crossing and his body was floating next to the side of the boat.

The athletes approached the boat of young Algerians, who were already in a state of panic, and offered them some water and food. “They were 16 young people who had set sail from Algeria hoping to reach Spain, but they were adrift for five days.

After about two hours of waiting, Spanish rescue teams arrived and transported the remainder of the Algerian group to the southern Spanish port of Almeria as they did not all survive the crossing. 

When the athletes had initially found the boat, a deceased body was floating next to it. “There were initially 17 people on the boat but the younger brother of one of the Algerian youth was 22 years old and diabetic. He couldn’t get food and didn’t have blood sugar medication. He died a few days into the crossing, and they had to lower his body into the water as we approached them because the condition of his remains was bad.” 

Poland

Suspending Asylum in Poland

 

Suspending Asylum in Poland:

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk announced on Saturday that he intends to temporarily suspend asylum as part of his new migration policy, citing allegations of abuse by Belarus and Russia. Tusk stated that: “The state must regain 100 percent control over who enters and leaves Poland.

Tusk added that the suspension of the right to asylum will be part of a plan that will be presented at a ministerial meeting next Tuesday, according to the Polish News Agency. The Polish News Agency reported that Tusk did not give any further details, but did state at a meeting of the Civic Coalition: “We will minimize illegal immigration to  Poland at the lowest level” while referring to the abuse of the asylum system by Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko and Russian President Vladimir Putin as well as smugglers and human traffickers. Tusk continued to state “how the right of asylum is used is completely contradictory to the idea of the right of asylum.

Hungary

Hungarian Prime Minister: “establishing migrant centers outside of Europe is the only solution to the migration issue”

 

“Establishing Migrant Centers Outside of Europe is the Only Solution to the Migration Issue” states Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán:

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, during his October 9th speech at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, stressed that European borders must be preserved and proposed that establishing external centers for migrants is the only solution. 

Focusing on his priorities as his nation’s leader and representative at parliament, Orbán stated that“European borders must be secured, and I assure you that, without building migrant centers abroad, we will not be able to save the EU from illegal migration. Orbán continued his statement by adding that the only solution is to permit entry only to those who have been already authorized.

Orbán then went on to warn parliament in his statement that “Europe is in trouble” while emphasizing that he is approaching parliament “to sound the alarm, because it is time to act.