“We are pawns used to put pressure on Europe,” says Syrian returning from Belarus

At the gates of Europe, between Belarus and Poland, thousands of people are still stranded, with the hope of successfully crossing the border. The Belarusian regime is accused of having organized an influx of migrants and lhe route is now known: refugees pay to obtain a tourist visa for Belarus and a return ticket to Minsk, Belarus, before reaching the border to attempt to cross into Poland. However, some ended up turning back, faced with the firmness of the Polish authorities and the difficulties there. This is the case with Ahmad*, a Syrian refugee in his thirties who returned to Lebanon. He tells franceinfo about his journey.

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If Ahmad* agrees to testify, he nevertheless wishes to remain discreet: there is no meeting and he answers questions by telephone. “I am testifying because there are thousands of people stranded there.” He fears the reprisals of the omnipresent smugglers in Lebanon. “Ois not afraid. People are looking for us because we talk to the press, worries this Syrian refugee. These are the criminals who run this business. “

These well-established networks extorted more than $ 8,000 from him by selling him the dream of Europe using a now classic method: $ 4,000 for the plane ticket and tourist visa to Minsk, another 4,000 on instead, to pay intermediaries who made him believe that they were helping him.

“Listening to them, it seemed very simple: a 700-meter walk to cross the border, three kilometers to Poland and a car to take us to Germany.”

Ahmad *, Syrian refugee returning from the Belarusian border

to franceinfo

But once there, Ahmad’s dream turns into a nightmare. “Belarus’ priority was to let us pass but it was too difficult to go to Poland, he says. There was a river, barbed wire, and Polish policemen driving us away. When we tried to get back to Belarus, they would beat us up and send us back to Poland. ”

In all, Ahmad stayed six days making multiple attempts in the cold, without food or water. Whole days of wandering, in the no man’s land that separates the two countries. At his side, thousands of other candidates for the passage to Europe. “There were families, children and pregnant women”, remembers the Syrian refugee.

Among these candidates for exile, he finds compatriots but also Kurds, Iraqis, Egyptians, Indians, Iranians … “All came by plane with tourist visas”, says Ahmad *, shocked by what he has experienced and seen. “I will never forget. People died around us, some drowned. Children were shivering. We are pawns used to put pressure on Europe.” He has the feeling of being “back to square one”. “I imagined a better life”, he recalls.

* The first name has been changed