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Mostrando entradas con la etiqueta Migrant crisis. Mostrar todas las entradas
Mostrando entradas con la etiqueta Migrant crisis. Mostrar todas las entradas
viernes, 4 de septiembre de 2015
Refugee crisis
The funerals for Aylan, Galip and Rehan Kurdi have taken place with Abdullah Kurdi saying his final goodbyes to his family after they drowned attempting to cross from Turkey to Greece.
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Abdullah Kurdi mourns with his relative during the funeral of his toddlers, who drowned with their mother as they were trying to reach Greece Photo: REUTERS
Abdullah Kurdi, third left, the Syrian man who survived a capsizing during a desperate voyage from Turkey to Greece, stands in a graveyard after burying his wife and two sons in their hometown of Kobani Photo: AP
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Bob Geldof says he'll take in four migrant families as he lambasts politicians' response to crisis as a 'sickening disgrace'
Musician, 63, has offered to immediately take in four migrant families
Said he would open doors to his family home in Kent and London flat Aid campaigner described the migrant crisis as a 'sickening disgrace'
By THOMAS BURROWS FOR MAILONLINE
PUBLISHED: 10:12 GMT, 4 September 2015 | UPDATED: 11:28 GMT, 4 September 201
READ ARTICLE HERE
Bob Geldof has offered to immediately take in four families as he expressed disgust at the migrant and refugee crisis in Europe.
The aid campaigner and singer said he would open the doors to his family home in Kent and his flat in Battersea, London in a personal response to the shocking scenes on borders, beaches and railway stations.
The harrowing image of three-year-old Syrian boy Aylan Kurdi, who died with his five-year-old brother Galip and mother Rihan trying to reach the Greek island of Kos, has sparked an international outcry over the human cost of the crisis.
Speaking today, Mr Geldof said: 'If there's a new economy then there needs to be a new politics and it's a failure of that new politics that's led to this disgrace, this absolute sickening disgrace.
'I'm prepared - I'm lucky, I've a place in Kent and a flat in London - me and (partner) Jeanne would be prepared to take three families immediately in our place in Kent and a family in our flat in London, immediately, and put them up until such time as they can get going and get a purchase on their future.'
he musician has owned the 12th century Davington Priory in Faversham, Kent, since the 1980s. The historic building he will open to refugees is a listed former Benedictine nunnery.
It is adjoined to the parish church of St Mary Magdalene and St Lawrence and has a small connecting door leading from the Priory into the church.
Sir Bob's wedding to his first wife Paula Yates was blessed there in 1986 and daughter Peaches Geldof married husband Tom Cohen there in 2012.
But it has also been used for family funerals with both Paula's funeral being held there in 2000 and Peaches's funeral last year following her death from a drugs overdose aged 25.
Geldof told Ireland's RTE Radio: 'I can't stand what is happening. I cannot stand what it does to us.'
The Boomtown Rats frontman has been involved in humanitarian work for almost 40 years, most notably with the organising of the Live Aid concert in 1985 and the Band Aid Christmas single.
The 63-year-old said the pictures of Aylan's body and other distressing reports from borders and cities across Europe, were a source of shame.
He said: 'I look at it with profound shame and a monstrous betrayal of who we are and what we wish to be. We are in a moment currently now that will be discussed and impacted on in 300 years time.'
Geldof said he was in his home last night and could not grasp the depth of the crisis and the limited response from governments when he decided he should put his money where his mouth is.
'I've known, you've known, and everyone listening has known that the b******* we talk about, our values, are complete nonsense,' he said.
'Once it comes home to roost we deny those values, we betray ourselves, but those values are correct, and it happens time and time again.
'So we are better than this, we genuinely are.'
Sir Bob is opening the doors of his house in Davington, near Faversham, (pictured) as well as his Battersea flat in London to help deal with the growing migrant crisis
The musician said he would his flat in Battersea, London (pictured) in a personal response to the shocking scenes on borders, beaches and railway stations
Geldof said he was on the Italian island of Lampedusa 12 years ago where he visited a refugee camp and spoke to the mayor who said every morning dead men, women and children were being washed up on the rocks.
The aid campaigner described himself as a migrant.
He warned 'environmental decays' will worsen the migrant and refugee crisis in coming decades.
'All of this is happening now. We must have the politics and the humanity to deal with it. It makes me sick and a concert won't do it,' he added.
In June, Geldof said Europe could 'easily absorb' 250,000 refugees fleeing war-torn countries.
He said: 'The argument throughout Europe politically and nationally is migration causes huge problems, so you have to take that on board. Clearly the answer is to allow for these people to have a life in their own countries. No-one wants to leave their own country.'
His intervention comes as David Cameron used a visit to Portugal today to set out a commitment to welcome 'thousands' of Syrians living in UN refugee camps in Britain as he stepped up efforts to tackle the crisis.
The Prime Minister vowed that 'Britain will act with its head and its heart' as he announced plans to dramatically expand a scheme to resettle over 10 times more refugees in the UK.
But crucially, he ruled out playing any part in an EU quota scheme and there will be no move to accept any of the thousands of people who have reached Europe already.
It follows intense political and public pressure on the Prime Minister to rethink his policy.
The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby urged Mr Cameron to 'respond with compassion' while Labour's acting leader Harriet Harman said it was 'deplorable' that the government was 'putting its head in the sand and showing itself to be heartless and out of touch'.
More than 340,000 people signed a petition calling for the UK to 'accept more asylum seekers and increase support for refugee migrants'.
Said he would open doors to his family home in Kent and London flat Aid campaigner described the migrant crisis as a 'sickening disgrace'
By THOMAS BURROWS FOR MAILONLINE
PUBLISHED: 10:12 GMT, 4 September 2015 | UPDATED: 11:28 GMT, 4 September 201
READ ARTICLE HERE
Bob Geldof has offered to immediately take in four families as he expressed disgust at the migrant and refugee crisis in Europe.
The aid campaigner and singer said he would open the doors to his family home in Kent and his flat in Battersea, London in a personal response to the shocking scenes on borders, beaches and railway stations.
The harrowing image of three-year-old Syrian boy Aylan Kurdi, who died with his five-year-old brother Galip and mother Rihan trying to reach the Greek island of Kos, has sparked an international outcry over the human cost of the crisis.
Speaking today, Mr Geldof said: 'If there's a new economy then there needs to be a new politics and it's a failure of that new politics that's led to this disgrace, this absolute sickening disgrace.
'I'm prepared - I'm lucky, I've a place in Kent and a flat in London - me and (partner) Jeanne would be prepared to take three families immediately in our place in Kent and a family in our flat in London, immediately, and put them up until such time as they can get going and get a purchase on their future.'
he musician has owned the 12th century Davington Priory in Faversham, Kent, since the 1980s. The historic building he will open to refugees is a listed former Benedictine nunnery.
It is adjoined to the parish church of St Mary Magdalene and St Lawrence and has a small connecting door leading from the Priory into the church.
Sir Bob's wedding to his first wife Paula Yates was blessed there in 1986 and daughter Peaches Geldof married husband Tom Cohen there in 2012.
But it has also been used for family funerals with both Paula's funeral being held there in 2000 and Peaches's funeral last year following her death from a drugs overdose aged 25.
Geldof told Ireland's RTE Radio: 'I can't stand what is happening. I cannot stand what it does to us.'
The Boomtown Rats frontman has been involved in humanitarian work for almost 40 years, most notably with the organising of the Live Aid concert in 1985 and the Band Aid Christmas single.
The 63-year-old said the pictures of Aylan's body and other distressing reports from borders and cities across Europe, were a source of shame.
He said: 'I look at it with profound shame and a monstrous betrayal of who we are and what we wish to be. We are in a moment currently now that will be discussed and impacted on in 300 years time.'
Geldof said he was in his home last night and could not grasp the depth of the crisis and the limited response from governments when he decided he should put his money where his mouth is.
'I've known, you've known, and everyone listening has known that the b******* we talk about, our values, are complete nonsense,' he said.
'Once it comes home to roost we deny those values, we betray ourselves, but those values are correct, and it happens time and time again.
'So we are better than this, we genuinely are.'
Geldof said he was on the Italian island of Lampedusa 12 years ago where he visited a refugee camp and spoke to the mayor who said every morning dead men, women and children were being washed up on the rocks.
The aid campaigner described himself as a migrant.
He warned 'environmental decays' will worsen the migrant and refugee crisis in coming decades.
'All of this is happening now. We must have the politics and the humanity to deal with it. It makes me sick and a concert won't do it,' he added.
In June, Geldof said Europe could 'easily absorb' 250,000 refugees fleeing war-torn countries.
He said: 'The argument throughout Europe politically and nationally is migration causes huge problems, so you have to take that on board. Clearly the answer is to allow for these people to have a life in their own countries. No-one wants to leave their own country.'
His intervention comes as David Cameron used a visit to Portugal today to set out a commitment to welcome 'thousands' of Syrians living in UN refugee camps in Britain as he stepped up efforts to tackle the crisis.
The Prime Minister vowed that 'Britain will act with its head and its heart' as he announced plans to dramatically expand a scheme to resettle over 10 times more refugees in the UK.
But crucially, he ruled out playing any part in an EU quota scheme and there will be no move to accept any of the thousands of people who have reached Europe already.
It follows intense political and public pressure on the Prime Minister to rethink his policy.
The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby urged Mr Cameron to 'respond with compassion' while Labour's acting leader Harriet Harman said it was 'deplorable' that the government was 'putting its head in the sand and showing itself to be heartless and out of touch'.
More than 340,000 people signed a petition calling for the UK to 'accept more asylum seekers and increase support for refugee migrants'.
Bob Geldof: 'I'd be happy to put up four Syrian families right now
David Kearns
PUBLISHED
04/09/2015 | 10:17
READ ARTICLE HERE
Bob Geldof
Irish music legend Bob Geldof says he is willing to take in four refugee families if it helps end the current migrant crisis engulfing Europe.
The Boomtown Rats front man told Dave Fanning this morning on RTÉ Radio 1 that Ireland could not “close our eyes to people dying needlessly”.
“We are better than this, we genuinely are. I'd be happy to put up a Syrian family," he said.
“I’m prepared - I’m lucky, I’ve a place in Kent and a flat in London - me and (partner) Jeanne would be prepared to take three families immediately in our place in Kent and a family in our flat in London, immediately, and put them up until such time as they can get going and get a purchase on their future."
Read More: 'Ireland could take in more than 1,800 refugees' - Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald
Mr Geldof described the migrant situation as “this disgrace, this sickening f**king disgrace”.
Adding: “I can’t stand what is happening. I cannot stand what it does to us.”
The musician, who most famously organised the Live Aid concerts in 1985 and the Band Aid Christmas single, has been involved in humanitarian work for almost 40 years.
"It is a monstrous betrayal of who we are and what we wish to be, we are in a moment that will be discussed and impacted upon in 300 years time, a fundamental shift in the way the world has worked for the last, say, 600 years," he told Dave Fanning.
"With a new economy there needs to be a new politics, and the failure of this new politics has led to this f**king, this disgrace, this sickening f**king disgrace.
"I’ve known and you’ve known and everyone has known that the b*****ks we talk about our values are complete nonsense.
"Once it comes home to roost we deny those values."
Read More: It's time the Irish people took a stance on the refugee crisis
Mr Geldof went on to urged the Irish and UK governments to get their “acts together” and take a lead in tackling the refugee crisis.
The avid campaigner said people were heading to Europe because of political and economic turmoil and the desire for a better life.
"I'm an economic migrant too... and that's why I'm very bitter about Ireland now," he added.
His comments come as Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald said today that Ireland would accept at least 1,800 refugees.
Read More: Let's ensure Aylan's death was not in vain
Ms Fitzgerald said the refugee crisis demanded “the most comprehensive response" and that the number of refugees expected to come to Ireland was “clearly going to increase”.
"I think it will be in the thousands. It's very hard to put a precise figure on it. We want to respond in as a humanitarian way as possible."
Ms Fitzgerald revealed the increase two days after images emerged of three-year-old Syria Aylan Kurdi's body being washed up on a Turkish beach, an image that lead to massive public outcry over Europe's failure to tackle the tens of thousands of people attempting to enter its borders.
PUBLISHED
04/09/2015 | 10:17
READ ARTICLE HERE
Irish music legend Bob Geldof says he is willing to take in four refugee families if it helps end the current migrant crisis engulfing Europe.
The Boomtown Rats front man told Dave Fanning this morning on RTÉ Radio 1 that Ireland could not “close our eyes to people dying needlessly”.
“We are better than this, we genuinely are. I'd be happy to put up a Syrian family," he said.
“I’m prepared - I’m lucky, I’ve a place in Kent and a flat in London - me and (partner) Jeanne would be prepared to take three families immediately in our place in Kent and a family in our flat in London, immediately, and put them up until such time as they can get going and get a purchase on their future."
Read More: 'Ireland could take in more than 1,800 refugees' - Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald
Mr Geldof described the migrant situation as “this disgrace, this sickening f**king disgrace”.
Adding: “I can’t stand what is happening. I cannot stand what it does to us.”
The musician, who most famously organised the Live Aid concerts in 1985 and the Band Aid Christmas single, has been involved in humanitarian work for almost 40 years.
"It is a monstrous betrayal of who we are and what we wish to be, we are in a moment that will be discussed and impacted upon in 300 years time, a fundamental shift in the way the world has worked for the last, say, 600 years," he told Dave Fanning.
"With a new economy there needs to be a new politics, and the failure of this new politics has led to this f**king, this disgrace, this sickening f**king disgrace.
"I’ve known and you’ve known and everyone has known that the b*****ks we talk about our values are complete nonsense.
"Once it comes home to roost we deny those values."
Read More: It's time the Irish people took a stance on the refugee crisis
Mr Geldof went on to urged the Irish and UK governments to get their “acts together” and take a lead in tackling the refugee crisis.
The avid campaigner said people were heading to Europe because of political and economic turmoil and the desire for a better life.
"I'm an economic migrant too... and that's why I'm very bitter about Ireland now," he added.
His comments come as Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald said today that Ireland would accept at least 1,800 refugees.
Read More: Let's ensure Aylan's death was not in vain
Ms Fitzgerald said the refugee crisis demanded “the most comprehensive response" and that the number of refugees expected to come to Ireland was “clearly going to increase”.
"I think it will be in the thousands. It's very hard to put a precise figure on it. We want to respond in as a humanitarian way as possible."
Ms Fitzgerald revealed the increase two days after images emerged of three-year-old Syria Aylan Kurdi's body being washed up on a Turkish beach, an image that lead to massive public outcry over Europe's failure to tackle the tens of thousands of people attempting to enter its borders.
Bob Geldof vows to take in four refugee families
4 September 2015 at 10:56am
READ ARTICLE HERE
Credit: PA
Bob Geldof has said he will immediately take in four families as he expressed his disgust at the migrant and refugee crisis in Europe.
The aid campaigner and Boomtown Rats front man pledged to open the doors of his family home in Kent and his flat in London, in a personal response to the distressing scenes taking place on borders and beaches across Europe.
Mr Geldof said:
I'm prepared - I'm lucky, I've a place in Kent and a flat in London - me and (partner) Jeanne would be prepared to take three families in our place in Kent and a family in our flat in London, immediately, and put them up until such time as they can get going and get a purchase on their future."
– BOB GELDOF
Geldof told Ireland's RTE Radio: "I can't stand what is happening. I cannot stand what it does to us."
READ ARTICLE HERE
Bob Geldof has said he will immediately take in four families as he expressed his disgust at the migrant and refugee crisis in Europe.
The aid campaigner and Boomtown Rats front man pledged to open the doors of his family home in Kent and his flat in London, in a personal response to the distressing scenes taking place on borders and beaches across Europe.
Mr Geldof said:
I'm prepared - I'm lucky, I've a place in Kent and a flat in London - me and (partner) Jeanne would be prepared to take three families in our place in Kent and a family in our flat in London, immediately, and put them up until such time as they can get going and get a purchase on their future."
– BOB GELDOF
Geldof told Ireland's RTE Radio: "I can't stand what is happening. I cannot stand what it does to us."
Aylan Kurdi: Father of drowned 3-year-old tells of moment his children slipped through his hands
By Callum Paton
September 3, 2015 18:51 BST
Updated 1 hr ago
READ ARTICLE HERE
Abdullah Kurdi, father of three-year old Aylan Kurdi, cries as he leaves a morgue in Mugla, Turkey, September 3, 2015.(Reuters)
The father of Aylan Kurdi, the three-year-old boy who drowned off the coast of Turkey trying to reach Western Europe, has said his family slipped through his hands and were swept away after the boat carrying them sunk in the Aegean Sea.
The images of the child washed up on the Ali Hoca Point Beach have resonated around the world. Abdullah, who also lost his five-year-old son Galip and his wife Rehan, along with 10 other refugees, has told of his personal tragedy in an exclusive interview with Turkey's Dogan news agency.
"I was holding my wife's hand. But my children slipped through my hands. We tried to cling to the small boat, but it was deflating. It was dark and everyone was screaming," he told the news service.
The Kurdish family fled from Kobane in the wake of clashes in the town between Islamic State (Isis) and Kurdish forces. They had embarked on the tragic journey to Kos with other residents from their home town after twice being deceived by people smugglers. Abdullah now has no desire to go to Europe and plans to return to his beleaguered home to bury his children.
He discovered the deadly result of his family's ill-fated journey when at a hospital in Bodrum. Until he was confronted directly with the news of his loved ones' deaths he had held out hope they might have survived.
A Turkish police officer carries the body of Aylan Kurdiwho drowned off the coast of Bodrum(Nilufer Demir/Reuters)
"I tried to swim to the shore with the help of the lights but couldn't find my wife and children once I was there. I thought they got scared and ran away," he said.
"When I couldn't find them in our meeting point in [Bodrum] where we normally meet, I went to the hospital and got the bad news."
Roughly 2,000 migrants from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan have been arriving on the Greek Aegean islands of Kos, Lesbos, Samos and Chios every day from nearby Turkey.
Greece has overtaken Italy to become the main port of entry into Europe for migrants. The country's cash-strapped interim government has said it needs EU funds to improve infrastructure for dealing with the increased numbers.
A record number of 320,000 refugees and migrants have crossed EU borders so far this year, mainly through a treacherous sea route across the Mediterranean to Greece and Italy. Some 107,500 arrived in July alone, while more than 2,600 are believed to have died at sea since January.
September 3, 2015 18:51 BST
Updated 1 hr ago
READ ARTICLE HERE
The father of Aylan Kurdi, the three-year-old boy who drowned off the coast of Turkey trying to reach Western Europe, has said his family slipped through his hands and were swept away after the boat carrying them sunk in the Aegean Sea.
The images of the child washed up on the Ali Hoca Point Beach have resonated around the world. Abdullah, who also lost his five-year-old son Galip and his wife Rehan, along with 10 other refugees, has told of his personal tragedy in an exclusive interview with Turkey's Dogan news agency.
"I was holding my wife's hand. But my children slipped through my hands. We tried to cling to the small boat, but it was deflating. It was dark and everyone was screaming," he told the news service.
The Kurdish family fled from Kobane in the wake of clashes in the town between Islamic State (Isis) and Kurdish forces. They had embarked on the tragic journey to Kos with other residents from their home town after twice being deceived by people smugglers. Abdullah now has no desire to go to Europe and plans to return to his beleaguered home to bury his children.
He discovered the deadly result of his family's ill-fated journey when at a hospital in Bodrum. Until he was confronted directly with the news of his loved ones' deaths he had held out hope they might have survived.
"I tried to swim to the shore with the help of the lights but couldn't find my wife and children once I was there. I thought they got scared and ran away," he said.
"When I couldn't find them in our meeting point in [Bodrum] where we normally meet, I went to the hospital and got the bad news."
Roughly 2,000 migrants from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan have been arriving on the Greek Aegean islands of Kos, Lesbos, Samos and Chios every day from nearby Turkey.
Greece has overtaken Italy to become the main port of entry into Europe for migrants. The country's cash-strapped interim government has said it needs EU funds to improve infrastructure for dealing with the increased numbers.
A record number of 320,000 refugees and migrants have crossed EU borders so far this year, mainly through a treacherous sea route across the Mediterranean to Greece and Italy. Some 107,500 arrived in July alone, while more than 2,600 are believed to have died at sea since January.
Aylan Kurdi: Photographer who captured harrowing image of Syrian toddler describes 'pain and sorrow'
Priya Joshi By Priya Joshi
September 3, 2015 22:44 BST
READ ARTICLE HERE
Aylan Kurdi: Images of the dead body of Syrian boy washed up on a Turkish beach have shocked the world(Nilufer Demir/Reuters)
The stark reality of the migrant crisis, captured in a single harrowing image of a toddler lying dead, washed up on a beach, has prompted a global outpouring of grief. The photographer, who took the heart-breaking picture of three-year-old Aylan Kurdi's lifeless body, on the shore of the Aegean coast, has said she was "petrified" as she took the shot.
Photo-journalist Nilüfer Demir, who was in Bodrum covering the migrant crisis for Turkey's Doğan News Agency (DHA), said in the moment she took the photo, she put her emotions aside to carry out her duty as a journalist.
She took the photo on September 2 at around 6:00 a.m., on Bodrum's Akyarlar coast of Turkey's Muğla province, where bodies of migrants washed ashore after two inflatable boats sank. Describing the scene she said: "On Sept. 2, I was on duty and also photographed ... a group of Pakistani migrants in an attempt to cross into Greece. While witnessing the tragedy, suddenly we noticed the lying, lifeless bodies. We recognized the bodies belonged to toddlers. We were shocked; we felt sorrow for them. The best thing to do was to make this tragedy heard.
"At that moment, when I saw the three-year-old Aylan Kurdi, I was petrified," she said. "[He] ... was lying lifeless face down in the surf, in his red t-shirt and dark blue shorts folded to his waist. The only thing I could do was to make his outcry heard."
She explained how she then saw another toddler lying on the ground, without a lifejacket. He was Aylan Kurdi's brother, Galip. "Galip was lying 100 metres away from his brother. I approached him this time. I noticed they didn't have any lifejackets on them, any arm floats, anything to help them to float in the water. This image shows how dramatic the incident was" added the photographer.
Reflecting on her emotional reaction to the sight of migrant deaths, she sad it was one of "pain and sorrow." Demir has been documenting the illegal crossing of migrants in the region for the last 15 years. She added that she hoped the heart-rending images she captured might contribute to much-needed change over the migrant issue.
"I have photographed and witnessed many migrant incidents since 2003 in this region... Their deaths, their drama. I hope from today, this will change. Hundreds, even thousands of migrants have flocked to Bodrum, because the Island of Kos is only 4 miles [away]. Migrants attempt to cross into Greece and then other European countries by boats, usually inflatable."
Galip Kurdi, aged five, and his three-year-old brother Aylan died along with their mother, Rehan, and 10 other refugees, who drowned when their boat capsized as they were trying to reach the Greek island of Kos. The family was fleeing Kobane in Syria, which is under attack from lslamic State (Isis).
The distressing image of Aylan Kurdi has been circulating on the internet and has been broadcast by news media around the world, prompting reactions of shock, sympathy and outrage at the desperate plight of the migrants.
While the photo has brought the European migrant crisis to the top of the world's agenda, the untold personal tragedy for Aylan's father Abdullah Kurdi, who lost both his children and his wife, is immeasurable. Expressing his loss he said: "Our children were the most beautiful in the world. They woke me everyday to play with me. What is more beautiful than this. There is nothing left."
Responding to the public outcry, in a dramatic about-turn on Britain's stand on the migrant issue, British Prime Minster David Cameron pledged to "do more." "As a father I feel deeply moved by the sight of that young boy on a beach in Turkey. Britain is a moral nation and we will fulfil our moral responsibility," he said.
Two petitions have been launched calling on the British government to fulfil their international humanitarian obligations and accept more refugees. The You Gov petition is now well over 200,000 and the Independent's petition has garnered over 100,000 signatures.
There is also a solidarity march planned in London for 12 September, with 40,000 people expected to attend.
September 3, 2015 22:44 BST
READ ARTICLE HERE
The stark reality of the migrant crisis, captured in a single harrowing image of a toddler lying dead, washed up on a beach, has prompted a global outpouring of grief. The photographer, who took the heart-breaking picture of three-year-old Aylan Kurdi's lifeless body, on the shore of the Aegean coast, has said she was "petrified" as she took the shot.
Photo-journalist Nilüfer Demir, who was in Bodrum covering the migrant crisis for Turkey's Doğan News Agency (DHA), said in the moment she took the photo, she put her emotions aside to carry out her duty as a journalist.
She took the photo on September 2 at around 6:00 a.m., on Bodrum's Akyarlar coast of Turkey's Muğla province, where bodies of migrants washed ashore after two inflatable boats sank. Describing the scene she said: "On Sept. 2, I was on duty and also photographed ... a group of Pakistani migrants in an attempt to cross into Greece. While witnessing the tragedy, suddenly we noticed the lying, lifeless bodies. We recognized the bodies belonged to toddlers. We were shocked; we felt sorrow for them. The best thing to do was to make this tragedy heard.
"At that moment, when I saw the three-year-old Aylan Kurdi, I was petrified," she said. "[He] ... was lying lifeless face down in the surf, in his red t-shirt and dark blue shorts folded to his waist. The only thing I could do was to make his outcry heard."
She explained how she then saw another toddler lying on the ground, without a lifejacket. He was Aylan Kurdi's brother, Galip. "Galip was lying 100 metres away from his brother. I approached him this time. I noticed they didn't have any lifejackets on them, any arm floats, anything to help them to float in the water. This image shows how dramatic the incident was" added the photographer.
Reflecting on her emotional reaction to the sight of migrant deaths, she sad it was one of "pain and sorrow." Demir has been documenting the illegal crossing of migrants in the region for the last 15 years. She added that she hoped the heart-rending images she captured might contribute to much-needed change over the migrant issue.
"I have photographed and witnessed many migrant incidents since 2003 in this region... Their deaths, their drama. I hope from today, this will change. Hundreds, even thousands of migrants have flocked to Bodrum, because the Island of Kos is only 4 miles [away]. Migrants attempt to cross into Greece and then other European countries by boats, usually inflatable."
Galip Kurdi, aged five, and his three-year-old brother Aylan died along with their mother, Rehan, and 10 other refugees, who drowned when their boat capsized as they were trying to reach the Greek island of Kos. The family was fleeing Kobane in Syria, which is under attack from lslamic State (Isis).
The distressing image of Aylan Kurdi has been circulating on the internet and has been broadcast by news media around the world, prompting reactions of shock, sympathy and outrage at the desperate plight of the migrants.
While the photo has brought the European migrant crisis to the top of the world's agenda, the untold personal tragedy for Aylan's father Abdullah Kurdi, who lost both his children and his wife, is immeasurable. Expressing his loss he said: "Our children were the most beautiful in the world. They woke me everyday to play with me. What is more beautiful than this. There is nothing left."
Responding to the public outcry, in a dramatic about-turn on Britain's stand on the migrant issue, British Prime Minster David Cameron pledged to "do more." "As a father I feel deeply moved by the sight of that young boy on a beach in Turkey. Britain is a moral nation and we will fulfil our moral responsibility," he said.
Two petitions have been launched calling on the British government to fulfil their international humanitarian obligations and accept more refugees. The You Gov petition is now well over 200,000 and the Independent's petition has garnered over 100,000 signatures.
There is also a solidarity march planned in London for 12 September, with 40,000 people expected to attend.
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