Plane carrying Syrian refugees arrives in Toronto — NewsAlert

If, for some reason, no accommodation is immediately available in the city where are being sent, the government-sponsored refugees will be housed at what Immigration officials are calling “interim lodging sites” at six military bases – Kingston, Petawawa, Borden, Meaford, and Trenton in Ontario and Valcartier in Quebec.

Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump caused a worldwide furor with a proposal to temporarily halt Muslims from entering the U.S.

Your current subscription does not provide access to this content. Please click the button below to manage your account. And I thank you deeply for being a part of this because this matters, tonight matters, not just for Canada but for the world. You have now viewed your allowance of free articles.

The first government aircraft carrying refugees from Syria has arrived at Pearson International Airport in Toronto.

Trudeau greeted the first two families to come through processing. “This shows the way we really are”. “We felt ourselves at home”.

“We suffered a lot”. “But you see, we never put all our eggs in one basket”.

Families were given teddy bears and winter clothing.

Since November 4,464 Syrian refugees have arrived in Canada and there are more than 12,500 applications in process, according to government figures.

“Tonight will begin two new chapters – a new life for the refugee families and another building block in Toronto’s proud success story”, said Tory in an e-mail.

Newly elected Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that resettlement could take longer than anticipated, but they want the refugees to have a roof over their head and the right support.

First batch of Syrian refugees arrive at Toronto airport.

The Syrians’ reception in Canada contrasted sharply with that of the neighboring United States, where fear of Syrian refugees following the deadly Nov 13 Paris attacks spurred opposition to allowing them entry.

“Canada has been so welcoming”.

“Canada has been so welcoming, the US doesn’t seem like that”.

While it is admirable and important to extend a humanitarian helping hand, there has to be a balance with respect to both the immigrants and the people of Canada. “It’s so multicultural”, he said.

“They said they are OK, no problem, one more day, it won’t count compared to the three or four years that have passed”, she said in a telephone interview.

“We believe full-time, permanent jobs are the key to successful refugee settlement and integration into Canadian society”, Jim Laws, executive director of the Canadian Meat Council, told iPolitics earlier this month. Once the refugees have cleared security and health screens at the airport, they’ll go on to the communities where their sponsors are waiting.

Around 164 people, including babies and young children, boarded a Canadian Forces plane from Beirut to Toronto on Thursday, CBC News reports. Stephen Harper promised during the election campaign to accept 10,000 Syrian refugees in response to the crisis.