On 4 December 2014, 22 Syrian refugees landed in Belgium for resettlement. 53 more are expected to arrive by the end of the year. Further resettlements of Syrian refugees are planned in 2015.

The Court of Justice of the European Union has issued a case-law in relation to international protection and protection of human rights in the case of alleged persecutions because of an applicant's sexual orientation.

The proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council, amending Regulation (EU) No 604/2013, aims at clarifying Member States’ responsibilities for examining the application for international protection of unaccompanied minors

On 11 November 2014, the European Commission has released its 6th bi-annual report on the functioning of the Schengen area covering the period from 1 May to 31 October 2014.

On 20 October 2014, the European Ombudsman, Emily O'Reilly, has opened an investigation into how Frontex ensures the respect of fundamental rights of migrants who are subject to forced returns from the EU to their countries of origin.

In November 2014, Belgium will welcome 75 Syrian refugees who have fled violence and war in their country. The refugees concerned are particularly vulnerable, including families and minors.

Every month, the Office of the Commissioner General for Refugees and Stateless persons (CGRS) publishes a document providing the statistics on asylum applications and first instance decisions.

Every month, the Office of the Commissioner General for Refugees and Stateless persons (CGRS) publishes a document providing the statistics on asylum applications and first instance decisions.

This is the July-August edition of EASO’s Newsletter. The newsletter provides information on the most recent EASO publications and activities.

On July 7, a press conference was held with Commissioner Cecilia Malmström and EASO's Executive Director entitled: 'EASO Annual Report on the Situation of Asylum in the European Union in 2013' and 'Latest Asylum Trends in Europe'.

In the light of a recent judgment of the Court of Justice of the EU, the Commission is proposing to clarify which Member State is responsible for examining applications made by unaccompanied minors.

The Eurostat newsrelease provides information on the annual (final instance) asylum decisions data for 2013 (Eurostat).

On 12 and 13 June 2014, the European Migration Network Conference 2014 took place on "Irregular migration and return: challenges and practices". The Conference was organised in Athens, within the framework of the Hellenic Presidency of the EU Council.

This year, the EMN Conference aims to support the policymaking process on a number of key areas of irregular migration policy, namely readmission, return, reintegration and cooperation with countries of transit and origin, as well as re-entry bans and (alternatives to) detention.

The French speaking Court of first instance of Brussels ruled on 19 May 2014 that an Afghan applicant rightly claimed that various organizations (UNHCR, ECRE, Amnesty International…) advocate the suspension of transfers to Bulgaria due to inadequate reception conditions and human rights violations.