Second batch of Iraqis return after failed Europe gamble

By SALAR SALIM
Associated Press

IRBIL, Iraq (AP) — A second batch of Iraqis have returned home in repatriation flights after a failed bid to enter Europe. Over 170 people returned on a flight that landed in Irbil airport in the northern Kurdish-run region Friday morning. Most were Iraqi Kurds. It was the second flight to bring back Iraqi returnees in a week. Returnees cited the cruelty of Belarusian border authorities — from beatings to threats — and attempts to push them to cross into neighboring European Union countries Poland and Lithuania. A Kurdish government spokesman says two flights were expected to arrive Friday morning at 2 a.m. and 7 a.m.