First government plane carrying refugees arrives in Canada Thursday Dec 10,2015

 

The first Canadian government plane carrying Syrian refugees arrived in Toronto late Thursday Dec 10,2015 where they will be 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 arrival of the military flight carrying 163 refugees comes amid an intense debate in the West over what to do with people fleeing violence in the Middle East. Canada’s welcoming stands in stark contrast to the U.S.

The flight arrived just before midnight carrying the first of two large groups of Syrian refugees to arrive in the country by government aircraft.

“This is a wonderful night, where we get to show not just a planeload of new Canadians what Canada is all about, we get to show the world how to open our hearts and welcome in people who are fleeing extraordinarily difficult situations,” Mr. Trudeau said to staff and volunteers who were waiting to process the refugees.

All 10 of Canada’s provincial premiers support taking in the refugees and members of the opposition, including the Conservative party, attended the welcoming late Thursday. Trudeau was also joined by the ministers of immigration, health and defence, as well as Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne and Toronto Mayor John Tory.