where they seek international protection. […] As the situation in Ukraine is volatile and may remain uncertain for some time to come, UNHCR calls on States to suspend the forcible return of nationals and former habitual residents of Ukraine, including those who have had their asylum claims rejected. The bar on forcible return serves as a minimum standard and needs to remain in place until such time as the security situation in Ukraine has significantly improved to permit a safe and dignified return of those determined not to be in need of international protection.” Al Jazeera, Hundreds of students trapped in Ukraine’s Sumy amid shelling, 5 March 2022 “Sumy lies about 48km (30 miles) from the border with Russia – it was one of the first cities to be attacked by Russian forces after President Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine on February 24. So far, fighting has mostly taken place on the outskirts of the city, but there are fears that Russian troops may soon advance into the centre. “We are really demoralised, everybody wants to go home,” Precious Ogunbayo, a 21-year-old medical student from Nigeria, told Al Jazeera. “We keep asking for help, but it’s not coming at all,” she added. […] “We are scared and mentally exhausted,” she said, adding that there are about 700 Indian students stranded in the city. So far students have been relying on the hostel’s supplies of food, as well as the university’s stocks, but water has been cut in the city for three days, forcing them to melt snow to drink and to cook with. […] About 400 Nigerian students are currently in Sumy, the second largest group of foreign students after Indians. Other students include citizens of Ghana, Rwanda, Turkmenistan, Jordan and Palestine. Like many others, Ogunbayo tried to flee the city but taxi or bus drivers charged up to $400 per person when they were still circulating. “You would have to be lucky to find a driver that knows the way and is willing to risk his life,” Ogunbayo said, adding that some who tried to escape with their own cars were shot at and returned to Sumy. […] Tatyana Mayboroda, who used to work at Sumy’s State University and is now an international students’ coordinator helping the evacuating effort, said that without a ceasefire any movement is impossible. […] More than 10,000 Indian students have been evacuated from Ukraine over the past week, including from the besieged city of Kharkiv, the Indian embassy in Kyiv said in a statement on Saturday – but none from Sumy. The embassy assured, though, that it “will leave no stone unturned in our efforts to ensure safe evacuation of Indian students” in the northeastern city. “I urge you for some more patience and forbearance so that we can ensure your safety and security,” it added.” Al Jazeera, ‘There’s Poland, now walk’: Arab students’ ordeal out of Ukraine, 5 March 2022 “Moroccan students recount their experience of discrimination at the hands of Ukrainian soldiers and citizens as they fled the Russian war.” Al Jazeera, ‘Horrifying’: Yemeni students flee war in Ukraine, 3 March 2022 “Yemeni students caught up in Russia’s invasion face arduous journeys and racial profiling as they try to escape Ukraine.” Al Jazeera, Non-Ukrainian refugees recount their long journey to Poland, 2 March 2022 “‘They prioritise Ukrainians’ Next to Navid sat a young couple. Heda, 22, from Morocco holds a small Pekinese dog called Linda on her lap. Adnan, 23, is a British national of Afghan descent. The couple – just like thousands of other refugees in the station – were foreign students in Ukraine. […] ‘Worthy and unworthy’ refugees Chinoso from Nigeria stands in front of the train station waiting for a car. The 36-yearold studied business and resource management in Kyiv and worked in a tour agency. It took him 27 hours to get to Lviv. “People were frightened, they left behind all they had, buildings were destroyed. I could hear the sirens, people were asked to go to bunkers or to the metro. There are still many families in the bunkers,” he told Al Jazeera. He planned to stay in Poland in the hope that the situation in Kyiv goes back to normal soon. Kyiv is his city, he said, and he would not like to live anywhere else. He also said he did 80

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