UK fifth most popular destination for asylum seekers

A survey of 36 industrialised countries found asylum applications on the rise - with a 45 per cent increase in Iraqis seeking asylum in the first half of this year compared with the previous six months.

The latest report from the Geneva-based UNHCR - the United Nations refugee agency - says the USA was by far the largest recipient of new asylum claims during the first six months of this year, dealing with an estimated total of 26,800 applications.

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Next came Sweden with 17,700 applicants - a 14 per cent increase on the last half of 2006.

Greece was the third most important destination, followed by France (about 14,000 asylum claims) and the UK, registering nearly 12,700 claims in the first half of 2007.

Rates of asylum are up almost everywhere, but the report highlights the vast rise in the number of Iraqis fleeing their war-torn country.

A total of 19,800 asylum claims were lodged during the first six months of 2007 by Iraqis citizens in the 36 industrialised countries supplying data to the UNHCR.

The figure is more than double the 8,500 applications submitted by Iraqis in the first half of 2006, and 45 per cent more than the 13,600 recorded in the last half of 2006.

Today's report says the soaring numbers reflect the continuing violence in Iraq: "If current trends are maintained, by the end of the year the number of Iraqi asylum seekers might reach the levels witnessed between 2000 and 2002 when, annually, an average of 40,000 to 50,000 Iraqis sought asylum in the 36 industrialised countries included in UNHCR's statistics."

An estimated 2.2 million Iraqis are currently outside their strife-torn homeland, primarily in neighbouring countries such as Syria and Jordan - not included in the asylum survey.

Almost half of all Iraqi applications during the first half of this year were submitted in Sweden, followed by Greece (3,500 applicants), Spain (1,500) and Germany (820).