‘Glad you’re here’: Canadian kids welcoming Syrian refugees will make you cry

The first Canadian government plane carrying Syrian refugees arrived in Toronto late Thursday where they were greeted by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who is pushing forward with his pledge to resettle 25,000 Syrian refugees by the end of February.

The family fled Syria, spent eight months in Lebanon and now they came to Canada because here, Madeleine will have many opportunities, the family said.

She said she had spoken to some of the families before they boarded the plane and said no one minds the extra night in a hotel. 54 percent of Canadians said they were against the government resettling Syrian refugees, while 42 percent said they support the plan.

Tsipras also said the government had initially been “taken by surprise” by the sheer number of migrants, “but since September there has not been a single arrival who has not been registered”.

But that policy was sharply criticized after the death of a 3-year-old Syrian boy, whose body on a Turkish beach became the defining image of the refugee crisis.

But just north of the border, in Canada, new (and still very boyish) Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is showing just how far leadership traits like compassion and open-mindedness can go toward endearing yourself to your countrymen. The premier of Ontario was with Trudeau to welcome this first large group to arrive.

“Canada has been so welcoming. It’s so multicultural”, he said. “All my friends are asking about Canada now and how they can come here”.

A handful of people gathered at the worldwide arrivals gate at Pearson bearing signs and gifts.

Toronto’s mayor tweeted a welcome, while the Toronto Star, the nation’s largest newspaper, covered its front page with a “Welcome to Canada” banner headline in English and Arabic, along with an article explaining Canadian weather, ice hockey and quirky local slang.

During Canada’s election campaign in the fall, which Trudeau won handily, he insisted that asylum seekers would immediately be entitled to free health care without having to wait for it, reversing a policy of Canada’s former Conservative government.

Canada has long prided itself on opening its doors to asylum seekers.

“With the first wave of refugees entering Canada this week, the situation is urgent and we hope our other business leaders will support and respond to our call and act accordingly”, said CN’s Executive Vice-President Luc Jobin at a news conference Friday morning.

Odjaghian said numerous refugees she spoke to, especially young people, have expressed that arriving in Canada is a chance to rebuild their lives.