First Syrian refugees arrive in Canada tonight

“Two days ago, we were very anxious about this issue, but thankfully, the government of Lebanon has responded very well and we now have exit visas, certainly enough for the first two planes to come from that part of the world to Canada”, said McCallum.

Cheers erupted at Toronto’s Pearson airport as two families of Syrian refugees emerged from the arrival gate Wednesday night and came face to face with those whose support brought them to Canada.

Paul Chiasson/APThe first planeload of Syrian refugees from camps in Jordan and Lebanon will arrive in Canada on Thursday, the country’s prime minister Justin Trudeau said on Wednesday.

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has called for blocking Muslims from entering the U.S. and some Republican candidates and governors have called for keeping out Syrian refugees.

According to the federal government, just under 500 refugees have already arrived in the country.

The flights, carrying a total of about 300 Syrians, will use an Airbus A310 military aircraft.

The first flight is scheduled to land at 9:15 p.m. Thursday evening, while a second plane is scheduled for Saturday in Montreal.

Unfortunately, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his government seem to be in denial of this very obvious fact.

The Obama administration plans to take in 10,000 Syrian refugees over the next year.

It’s a big day for some Syrian refugees as they touch down in Canada to begin their new life. “We don’t know where they are coming from, how much they’ve suffered, so we should try to be as helpful as we can”, says one woman who is sponsoring a family.

They had promised to resettle 25,000 Syrian refugees to Canada by year’s end, but were forced to spread the commitment over a longer time period because of the logistics involved.

“Canada must immediately accept 25,000 Syrian refugees, stop dragging its heels and understand that we must once again be the country that we like to think of ourselves as”.

“This is something that we are able to do in this country because we define a Canadian not by a skin colour or a language or a religion or a background, but by a shared set of values, aspirations, hopes and dreams that not just Canadians but people around the world share”.

With security concerns, immigration paperwork and the flight’s late-night arrival, refugees on the military aircraft were to be put up at a nearby hotel for the night before meeting their sponsors and resettlement agencies on Friday.

All the Syrians to be resettled in Canada will have been chosen by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.

In the meantime, privately sponsored refugees, people whose claims are in limbo or who are making an “inland” refugee claim after having arrived in Canada don’t get the full benefits of their counterparts.