A proposal for establishing a European Asylum Support Office was discussed by interior ministers during a public session at the Justice and Home Affairs Council meeting on 26 February. The new agency would be a centre of expertise to step up and coordinate practical cooperation among member states on various asylum matters.

Swiss newspaper Tribune de Geneve has reported that Muntadar al-Zaidi, the so-called "Bush Shoe Thrower" who has been in custody in Iraq after hurling shoes at U.S. President George W. Bush during a mid-December press conference, has asked for asylum in Switzerland.

Sweden is airing the welcome mat less and less when it comes to Iraqi asylum-seekers.

Sweden saw a dramatic increase in the number of people seeking asylum in 200

The Diana Memorial Fund plans to mark the tenth death anniversary of the Princess of Wales by spending ten million pounds of its funds on a campaign to promote the rights of refugees and asylum seekers in the United Kingdom.

Yelena Tregubova, a former Kremlin pool reporter and author of several books about Russian political elite, has applied for political asylum in Great Britain, the Ekho Moskvy radio reported on Tuesday quoting Tregubova's own statement.