Syrian families take court action in Ireland

Members of two Syrian families detained in Greece after fleeing the besieged city of Aleppo have taken an unprecedented action in the Irish courts against the European Council, EU, and Ireland over alleged breach of their human rights.

The core claim of the families is that the EU-Turkey deal on migration, agreed on March 18 by the European Council (EC) — the 28 EU heads of state, including Taoiseach Enda Kenny — was made outside the powers of the EC and breaches EU law. The deal allowed Greece return to Turkey “all new irregular migrants” arriving there since March 20.

That deal, and Ireland’s sanctioning of it, is incompatible with Ireland’s obligations under the European Convention on Human Rights and breaches various EU treaties, including the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU and the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU, they claim.