On 12 April, another chartered plane carrying Afghan migrants arrived in Toronto and over 30,000 Afghans have now been ‘resettled’ in the country by the UN Migration Agency (IOM).
The IOM has been working closely with the Justin Trudeau government since August 2021 to fly Afghans into the country and grant them permanent Canadian residency.
– The safe and dignified resettlement of refugees globally has been a central part of IOM’s work for more than 70 years and we are proud to be part of Canada’s efforts to provide a new home for tens of thousands of vulnerable Afghans, said António Vitorino, Director General of IOM, adding that it ensures that Afghans are given “the opportunity to start their lives in safety”.
Canada’s Immigration Minister Sean Fraser calls the 30,000 Afghans received a “milestone” and “a testament to the commitment of our partners”.
– Welcoming 30,000 Afghans, even though Afghanistan is one of the largest and most difficult resettlement efforts in Canada’s history, is a significant achievement.
He further states that he has met Afghans who have had the chance to “build new lives in Canada” and that this makes him more determined than ever to “help as many vulnerable Afghans as possible”.
– We will continue to collaborate with our partners to do everything we can to bring Afghans in need of protection to safety, and to provide them with a new home and the support they need to thrive in Canada, he promises.
The UN agency IOM plays a “crucial role” in helping Afghans get to Canada. This includes coordinating flights, assisting with application processes, providing health assessments and “preparing Afghans for their new life in Canada”.
Canada’s left-wing Liberal government has pledged to accept at least 10,000 more Afghans and the IOM has also worked with the government to fly in large numbers of Syrian and Iraqi migrants in the past.
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Politicians and media promised that mass immigration would make Sandviken, Sweden into an economic success story. Ten years later, reality is much bleaker: half the city is now classified as an exclusion area and compared to notorious problem suburbs like Rinkeby and Tjärna Ängar.
In 2014, left-liberal media, led by the Bonnier-owned Dagens Nyheter (Sweden’s largest daily newspaper), trumpeted that mass migration to Sandviken was a gigantic profitable venture that would make the entire municipality economically prosperous.
“Earns over half a billion from immigration”, read DN’s headline, claiming that each immigrant resident would generate €13,000 annually in revenue for the municipality.
The claims were based on figures in a report by auditing firm PwC and had been commissioned by the municipality itself.
Mass immigration was supposed to be a success for Sandviken. Photo: facsimile/DN
However, the optimistic calculations were based on fantasies and wishful thinking, and within just a couple of years it became clear that the municipality’s financial situation had instead become severely strained – with a budget deficit of €6 million.
— It was a fantasy scenario that was painted. The report was flawed from the beginning. How could anyone stand behind it?wondered Moderate Party opposition councilor Jonny Bratberg in 2019.
“White flight”
And since then, the situation has hardly improved. No billion-euro profits from mass immigration have materialized. Instead, the Swedish government now classifies half of Sandviken as an “exclusion area” – on the same list as notorious immigrant-dense and crime-ridden suburbs like Rinkeby (in Stockholm), Tjärna Ängar in Borlänge, and Gottsunda in Uppsala.
Surveillance cameras now sit on almost every street corner, and Emma Holmqvist, a segregation researcher at Uppsala University, notes that a large portion of the ethnically Swedish population has fled from immigrant-dense parts of Sandviken – and that other Swedes avoid moving there.
— ‘White flight, white avoidance’ is what we call it, says Emma Holmqvist.
— In long-term studies we can see that those with high incomes are partly driving spirals of segregation. They have housing choices that low-income earners lack. They can move away from an area with rental apartments and negative development, simply by purchasing housing.
Swedes don’t want to live with immigrants
She emphasizes, however, that people – regardless of group affiliation – tend to want to live near people who are like themselves, and that this applies to both families with children and high-income earners.
— But one thing that stands out is that many with immigrant backgrounds tend to want to live with more Swedes – the opposite rarely applies to native-born Swedes, she notes.
That Swedes in Sandviken don’t want to live together with immigrants is pointed out as a major and acute problem that must be solved by politicians – for example, by building more rental apartments in villa neighborhoods.
Children as integration tools
The municipality’s politicians have previously attracted attention in connection with a heavily criticized integration initiative where they made the decision to forcibly relocate mainly Swedish children from villa areas to an immigrant-dense, low-performing school in an exclusion area.
The decision enraged many parents and was described as a kind of “social experiment,” where children were involuntarily made into tools in politicians’ integration policy project.
— This is some form of Social Democratic wet dream, where you mix up the students in yet another integration project. You take an A-school and exchange half the students with a D-school, and then you get two C-schools instead – so everyone becomes satisfied and happy. It’s completely insane, of course, commented Jonny Bratberg on the matter in Tidningen Näringslivet (a Swedish business publication).
In the middle of Florida’s swamplands, the state is now building a new migrant detention center. According to the authorities, nature’s own predators will contribute to security—and make the facility both cheap and effective.
The new facility, informally known as “Alligator Alcatraz”, is being built at Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport, a defunct airport facility 36 miles west of Miami. The site is surrounded by wetlands and swampy areas that are home to alligators, pythons, and other predators.
– You don’t need to invest that much in the perimeter. If people get out, there’s not much waiting for them other than alligators and pythons, said Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier in a presentation video.
The video describes the detention center as key to implementing President Trump’s plan for mass deportations, accompanied by slow-motion clips of attacking alligators.
Uthmeier calls the project “cost-effective” and describes the area as “an old, virtually abandoned airport facility right in the middle of the Everglades”. According to information from the Department of Homeland Security, the facility is expected to cost the state approximately $450 million per year to operate. He has also confirmed that the Florida National Guard will participate in the operation of the center, which will consist of lighter infrastructure such as tents and trailers.
Alligator Alcatraz: the one-stop shop to carry out President Trump’s mass deportation agenda. pic.twitter.com/96um2IXE7U
— Attorney General James Uthmeier (@AGJamesUthmeier) June 19, 2025
“Cost-effective and innovative”
The facility is scheduled to be completed in the first week of July and will be one of several temporary facilities that Florida is setting up to meet the increasing strain on the federal system. According to Uthmeier, the federal government has approved the state’s plans to create 5,000 detention places in Florida as early as this summer.
US Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem called the initiative “cost-effective and innovative” in a post on X, highlighting the collaboration with Florida as an example of how capacity can be expanded in a matter of days. The state’s offer to purchase the land from Miami-Dade County for $20 million is based on an executive order from Governor Ron DeSantis and an emergency order from the Florida Division of Emergency Management.
Under President Trump’s leadership, we are working at turbo speed to deliver cost-effective and innovative ways to deliver on the American people’s mandate for mass deportations of criminal illegal aliens. We will expand facilities and bed space in just days, thanks to our…
The Minister of Justice assures that the rule of law will be upheld.
– We will give them the legal process that the courts say they are entitled to, Uthmeier said in an interview with conservative commentator Benny Johnson.
Environmental activists are furious
However, the initiative has drawn criticism from political opponents, particularly environmental activists and groups advocating mass immigration. Friends of the Everglades, which took part in a protest against the construction over the weekend, has warned in an open letter that the project threatens an ecologically sensitive area.
The group calls the site “critical to the future of the Everglades” and warns against opening it up to development in what it describes as one of America’s most iconic and vulnerable ecosystems.
– It really strikes you as a clueless idea that was off the cuff, the group’s executive director, Eve Samples, told CNN. She also pointed out that the same site was the subject of protests back in the 1970s, when plans for a huge airport were halted after massive public opposition.
Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava has also expressed concern about the project.
– We continue to have significant concerns about the scope and scale of the state’s effort, particularly regarding the environmental safeguards, she said in a statement, warning that the rapid pace of implementation leaves little time for reflection and risk assessment.
Sweden continues to stand out as one of Europe’s most borderless and generous countries when it comes to granting citizenship to migrants.
According to recent Eurostat statistics, Sweden grants the most citizenships per capita in the EU, apart from tiny Luxembourg. This is despite the ruling coalition parties (Tidö) promising a “paradigm shift” in immigration policy.
In 2023, Spain granted the most citizenships in absolute terms, with over 240,000 new passports, followed by Italy (214,000) and Germany (200,000). But when the numbers are put in relation to the size of the population, the picture changes dramatically.
The Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, with a population of just 680 000, tops the list with 8.8 citizenships per thousand inhabitants, followed by Sweden in second place with 6.4. Spain comes third with 5.0, and Italy drops to fifth place with 3.6.
Sweden also stands out in naturalization rates – the percentage of foreign nationals living in the country who are granted citizenship. At 7.9%, Sweden topped the EU in 2023, meaning that almost eight out of every hundred foreign nationals in the country became Swedish citizens. Romania followed with 5.9% and Italy with 4.1%. The EU average, by comparison, was 2.6%.
It is worth noting that the Tidö parties campaigned on a tougher immigration policy and have promised to tighten citizenship rules, including extending the period of residence from the current five years to at least eight years, as well as introducing requirements for Swedish language skills and a declaration of loyalty. Despite this, 66,000 citizenships were granted in 2024, according to the Migration Agency, only a marginal decrease from 68,000 the year before.
Internal frustration
The lack of concrete measures to stop mass migration has led many Sweden Democrats to react with frustration – even high-ranking ones.
Last November, for example, Member of Parliament Josef Fransson called for a moratorium on citizenship in a written question to the government, stating that “despite the mandate we received from the voters, Sweden continues to hand out citizenship generously to foreigners who do not meet the requirements stipulated in the Tidö Agreement“.
He pointed out that the number of new citizenships granted during the Moderate-led government’s rule in 2023 corresponded to the entire population of Skövde.
Questions about the Moderates’ intentions
In January 2025, the report “Stricter requirements for Swedish citizenship” was presented, proposing a longer period of residence and requirements for self-sufficiency. However, the reforms are not expected to enter into force until June 1, 2026, which means that Sweden will continue to follow the current more generous rules until then.
However, many observers question what effect the proposed changes will actually have in practice. Critics stress that Sweden continues to experience large-scale mass migration, and that the government should rather focus on ambitious re-immigration programs to tackle immigration-related problems.
Several observers have also questioned whether the Moderates and the other liberal parties in government have any genuine desire to change Sweden’s migration policy course. Critics say it is largely a matter of rhetoric and symbolic gestures – in order to retain power, not lose voters and maintain cooperation with the Sweden Democrats, on whose support the government depends.
White British children are now in the minority in a quarter of all schools in England, according to an analysis by The Telegraph based on official school statistics from early 2025.
Of the more than 21,500 schools included in the statistics, 72 have no white pupils at all, while in another 454 schools they make up less than two percent of the student body.
The demographic transformation is most noticeable in the country’s larger cities. At Rockwood Academy in Birmingham, none of the school’s 1,084 pupils were registered as “white British”, according to the newspaper. At Loxford School in Redbridge, east London, only 12 of the school’s 2,779 pupils were white British.
The trend is particularly prominent in areas such as London, Birmingham, Manchester, Bradford, and Leicester. In London, white British children are in the minority in all but one of the 32 boroughs – Bromley – where they account for 50.3 percent of the population. In Newham and Harrow, the corresponding figures are as low as five and seven percent, respectively.
“The school census data demonstrates that the white British share of the young population is in decline in many areas”,writes the newspaper.
“A nation of strangers”
Recently, The Nordic Times drew attention to another British report that predicts that white Britons as a group will be in the minority in the UK as early as the beginning of the 2060s. The forecast is based on analyses of migration, birth rates, and mortality, and indicates that the proportion of white Britons could decline from around 73 percent today to around 33.7 percent by the end of the century.
The study was conducted by Professor Matt Goodwin at Buckingham University. He believes that this development raises “deep questions about Britain’s ability to absorb and manage this scale of demographic change“.
Goodwin also warns that the trend is likely to cause “considerable anxiety, concern and political opposition” among voters – something he believes the country must actively address to avoid “considerable political turbulence and polarisation in the years and decades to come”.
– By the end of this century, most people on these islands will not be able to trace their roots in this country back more than one or two generations. This raises enormous questions about our leaders’ ability to bring people together around a common identity, values and culture, and avoid the risk of becoming what Sir Keir Starmer called in May ‘a nation of strangers’“, he notes.
