Refugees in Brazil

Brazil is accepting Palestinian refugees (approximately 100 in all) displaced by the Iraq war (they had fled to Jordan). The decision is based on the 2004 Mexico Plan of Action, under the auspices of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. Up to this point, it has focused mostly on Colombians escaping the violence there. A quote from the plan:

The Mexico Plan of Action, adopted by 20 governments, is a continent-wide framework for the protection of displaced people. By adopting the Plan, governments have committed themselves to strengthening refugee protection and implementing an integrated approach to durable solutions.

This story really deserves more attention—I had missed the original story last month when the first group arrived. This is obviously a very generous decision, and I’d be interested to learn more about how Brazil became involved—Lula is never mentioned in the articles yet he has to be central. The Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce discusses it a bit, but is rather short on details.

The U.S. government, which created the mess in the first place, remains mum. It may be that the refugees are subsequently cited as a potential Middle East terrorist threat in Brazil…