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Sunday 20 Sep 2015 - 13:15 Makkah mean time-7-12-1436
Toronto (IINA) – Canadian government said Saturday that it will issue thousands more visas to Syrian refugees before the end of this year by accelerating the processing of their applications, as it tries to counter election-year criticism over its handling of the refugee crisis, AP reported.
Canada will bring in 10,000 refugees by September 2016. The Prime Minister Stephen Harper's government said it will speed the processing of Syrian refugees by no longer requiring them to prove their refugee status through the UN refugee agency. Instead, Syrians will be presumed to be refugees by Canadian authorities who vet their applications.
Canada again declined to resettle more Syrian refugees. The country has long prided itself for opening its doors to asylum seekers, but the numbers have waned since Harper took power almost 10 years ago.
Harper's handling of Syrian refugees has become a top election issue for Canadians, who will decide if the prime minister earns a rare fourth term on Oct. 19. Harper is locked in a tight three-way race.
Harper's government has endured criticism for taking in just 2,500 refugees since Jan. 2014, especially after the photo a 3-year-old boy, Aylan Kurdi, lying face down on a Turkish beach made headlines around the world two weeks ago. More than 4 million Syrians have fled their country since the conflict erupted in 2011.
AB/IINA
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