English version of today’s judgment now available on Eur-Lex: eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-conten...

Eerste Kamer verwerpt asielnoodmaatregelenwet, meerderheid voor tweestatusstelsel De asielnoodmaatregelenwet heeft geen meerderheid gekregen, het tweestatusstelsel wel.

Eerste Kamer verwerpt asielnoodmaatregelenwet, meerderheid voor tweestatusstelsel

Daarnaast is het uiteraard ook vreemd dat de Minister van Asiel en Migratie zich uitlaat over de vraag wanneer er wel of geen strafvervolging zal worden ingesteld.

Hier gaat (zie art. 167 SV & 124 Wet RO) nog altijd enkel het OM over in Nederland

… maar dat ligt dus niet verankerd in de betreffende wetgeving.

Hoewel wellicht politiek, is Van Den Brink vanuit juridisch oogpunt dus niet gehouden aan wat hij hier “verzekert”.

Laat staan een toekomstig minister (mogelijk van een andere politieke kleur)

🤦‍♂️

In the meantime, however, it is good to see that (unlike e.g. the European Commission, see: eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-conten...), some European actors are still willing to publicly question the doubful legality of domesctic pushback laws (also adopted/considered by other European states)

We will likely only get a definitive answer on the ECHR compliance of such pushback practices when the ECtHR rules in R.A. and Others v. Poland, H.M.M. and Others v. Latvia, see: www.echr.coe.int/w/grand-cham...

Concretely the Commissioner raises questions about the compliance of the Polish policy with Art. 3 (prohibition of torture, also covering non-refoulement) & Art. 13 (the right to an effective remedy) ECHR.

In light of this, a request for information on how Poland is guaranteeing compliance is made

In the letter, the Commissioner stresses that the resulting "[...] practice of summary returns of persons across the border to Belarus, without an individual assessment, carries a risk of violations of the rights protected by the European Convention on Human Rights."

For the Polish policy:

👀⚖️ CoE Commissioner for Human Rights, Michael O’Flaherty has just published his letter to Polish Interior Minster, Marcin Kierwiński, questioning the human rights compliance of the March '25 Polish suspension of 'instrumentalised' migrants' right to asylum

✉️ For the letter:

Strafbare illegaliteit: fundamenteel onjuist Eerstejaars rechtenstudenten leren dat een strafbaar feit een menselijke gedraging is die valt onder een (wettelijke) delictsomschrijving, wederrechtelijk is en aan schuld te wijten. Strafbaar kun je ...

Vandaag en morgen behandelt de 1e Kamer de strafbaarstelling illegaliteit (in juli ‘25 aangenomen in de 2e Kamer)

Voor een analyse van de fundamentele onjuistheid van dit plan, lees het uitstekende NJB blog van prof. Straf(proces)recht aan de Radboud en voormalig raadsheer in de HR, Ybo Buruma:

🌍 The New Pact implementation deadline is fast approaching. Yet Orbán has made clear that HUN will not implement the CEAS reforms.

✍️ In this @epc-official.bsky.social post, A. Neidhardt and I analyse the normalisation of non-compliance that this case may sprak and how the EC & MS could respond

Fabrice Leggeri, ex-directeur de Frontex et eurodéputé RN, visé par une enquête pour complicité de crimes contre l’humanité Pour la première fois, la justice française va se pencher sur le rôle d’un ex-dirigeant de Frontex dans la tragédie migratoire en Méditerranée, à la suite d’une plainte de la LDH.

Fabrice Leggeri, ex-directeur de Frontex et eurodéputé RN, visé par une enquête pour complicité de crimes contre l’humanité

👨‍🏫 Yesterday, I discussed the question 'Is the Commission helping overturn instrumentalised migrants' right to asylum?' during the @lawinmaastricht.bsky.social #MCELForum

🙏 I want to thank all members for their comments and am all the more invigorated to keep delving into these worrying developments

If anyone comes across any updates or informative writings on these, please let me know 🙏!

Whenever (as always, never enough time) I have concluded my ongoing research into all these matter, you will see so on here ;)

As well as for the R.A. and Others v. Poland, H.M.M. and Others v. Latvia, and C.O.C.G. and Others v. Lithuania cases, regarding the same factual situation, currently pending before the ECtHR, see:

This conclusion, if confirmed, may have important consequences, including, potentially by analogy, for the Alleged Smuggling of Migrants (Lithuania v. Belarus) proceedings, currently pending at the ICJ, see:

Notably, in its conclusions, the OTP indicates that "there reasonable basis to believe that the concerned coervive acts [...] were encouraged or approved by the highest levels of the [Belarusian] Government" (para. 8).

The OTP's examinations focussed on alleged transboundary crimes, including crimes against humanity, such as deportation pursuant to article 7(1)(d) and persecution through deportation against any identifiable group or collectivity on political grounds pursuant to article 7(1)(h) of the Rome Statute

⚖️👀 The ICC's OTP has concluded its preliminary examinations into Lithuania/Belarus, regaring the alleged int. criminality of the latter's reportedly ongoing 'instrumentalisation' of migration.

The OTP has announced that an investigation will now commece.

For a summay of the OTP's findings, see:

#ECJ: If a Member State refuses to take charge of asylum seekers for whom it is responsible, the requesting State may ultimately have to examine the asylum application. 👉 curia.europa.eu/site/upload/...

Case Law Summaries Prepared by the Case Law Editorial Team: Aidan Hammerschmid (Coordinating Editor), Brian Barbour, Regina Jefferies, and Tamara Wood from the Kaldor Centre

👀 Yet another batch of IJRL case law summaries has been published

✍️ For those interested in recent judicial developments, have a look at the summaries prepared by our team through the link below

🤝 ... And as always, if a decision comes out in your country that should be included, please reach out!

Deportations, visas and police powers on EU interior ministers’ agenda A senior EU diplomat told reporters that ministers will focus on ways to compel people to return home voluntarily, amid wider migration talks on working with Lebanon and Libya.

”A commission spokesperson cited the [crisis and force majeure] regulation as a potential response to any mass exodus of people fleeing Iran towards Europe.”
➡️ Using the temporary protection directive could be a much better option… euobserver.com/205550/depor...

The Migrants in the Ancient Forest Five years ago, Belarus began enabling people from high-conflict countries to migrate into Europe. Despite high walls and backlash, they’re still coming.

Volunteer aid workers bring migrants in the Białowieża Forest food, water, phone chargers, sleeping bags, and medical help. If they house or transport anyone, however, they risk being charged with assisting in an illegal border crossing. newyorkermag.visitlink.me/uLDuSe

Infografik mit dem Titel: „Über die Hälfte der Fluchttoten ertrinkt“. Untertitel: „Mindestzahl der toten/vermissten Geflüchteten weltweit und deren Todesursachen seit 2014“. Teil 1 – Anzahl nach Todesort: Mittelmeer: 34.226 Tote/Vermisste Afrika: 18.758 Asien: 15.930 Amerika: 11.447 Europa: 1.454 Das Mittelmeer weist mit Abstand die höchste Zahl auf. Teil 2 – Todesursachen in Prozent: 57,3 Prozent Ertrinken 8,8 Prozent Transport 7,3 Prozent Umweltbedingungen 7,2 Prozent Gewalt 4,2 Prozent Krankheit 1,8 Prozent Unfall 13,8 Prozent anderes oder unbekannt Stand der Daten: 23.02.2026, 09:00 Uhr. Quelle: IOM – Missing Migrants Project. Erstellt von Statista.

EU-Politiker*innen wählen ihre Worte sorgfältig. Sie klingen besonnener und manchmal sogar human. In der Konsequenz ist ihre Politik tödlicher als die der USA. Keine Grenze forderte mehr Leben Schutzsuchender als die der EU. Die Brutalität unseres Grenzregimes ist unübertroffen.

Asylum Pact 2.0: the EU amends the rules on ‘safe third countries’ and ‘safe countries of origin’ Steve Peers , Professor of Law, Royal Holloway University of London Photo credit : Paula Reister, via Wikimedia Commons Introductio...

An EU Rwanda policy for asylum-seekers?
My analysis of the new changes to EU law on "safe third countries" and "safe countries of origin"
eulawanalysis.blogspot.com/2026/02/asyl...

🌎 Keen to learn about ongoing developments in global migration governance? Join next week's
@ensured.bsky.social's 'In Conversation with Civil Society' webinar series, organised by @civicusalliance.bsky.social

📅 11 February 2026
⏰ 14:00-15.30 CET
📍 Online

👉 www.ensuredeurope.eu/news-events/...

Mutual trust does not supersede human rights! Italian judges unprecedently recognize the refugee status to an EU citizen Dr. Chiara Scissa * Photo credit : Bologna Tribunal, photo by Alex Sirac via Wikimedia Commons * Research fellow in EU law at the Uni...

An Italian court has recognised refugee status for an EU citizen - a Hungarian national who faces persecution for being Roma and transgender

Analysis by Chiara Scissa:
eulawanalysis.blogspot.com/2026/01/mutu...

The Council of the EU’s Position on the Return Proposal: Trump-Inspired Approaches Dominate Dr. Izabella Majcher , Independent Consultant Photo credit : Alamy stock photo   On 11 March 2025, the European Commission published a...

EU Member States have agreed on a revision of the EU law on expulsion of irregular migrants that hugely reduces basic standards. A critical analysis, by Dr. Izabella Majcher -

eulawanalysis.blogspot.com/2025/12/the-...

⚖️ Judgment in Case C-679/23 P WS and Others v Frontex:
What responsibilities does Frontex bear in joint return operations?

🎥 💬 Judge Octavia Spineanu-Matei explains with subtitles available in all EU languages 👉 curia.europa.eu/jcms/jcms/p1...
📰 PR 👉 curia.europa.eu/jcms/jcms/Jo...

⚖️ Judgment in Case C-136/24 P Hamoudi v Frontex:
How can migrants obtain effective judicial protection in cases involving alleged summary returns?

🎥 💬 Judge Bernardus Smulders explains with subtitles available in all EU languages 👉 curia.europa.eu/jcms/jcms/p1...