Canadian PM Justin Trudeau welcomes first govt plane carrying Syrian refugees

Toronto: The first Canadian government plane carrying Syrian refugees arrived in Toronto late Thursday where they were 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 stands in stark contrast to the U.S., which plans to take in 10,000 Syrian refugees over the next year and where Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump caused a worldwide uproar with a proposal to temporarily block Muslims from entering 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.

Trudeau greeted the first two families to come through processing. The first family was a man, woman and 16-month-old girl. The second family was a man, woman, and three daughters, two of whom are twins. Trudeau and Ontario’s premier welcomed them to Canada and gave them winter coats. Both families said they were happy to be here.

Justin Trudeau greets Madeleine Jamkossian, second from right, and her father Kevork Jamkossian, refugees fleeing the Syria, with cold-weather clothing as they arrive at Pearson International airport. (Photo: AP)

“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,” Trudeau said earlier 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 defense, as well as Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne and Toronto Mayor John Tory.

In the U.S., several Republican governors have tried to stop the arrival of Syrian refugees in their states in the wake of the deadly attacks blamed on Islamic extremists in Paris and California.

Justin Trudeau gives Syrian refugees Lucie Garabedian, center, and and her twin sister Sylvie Garabedian, left, winter jackets as their father, Vanig Garabedian, comforts his other daughter Anna-Maria Garabedian, right, after arriving at Pearson International airport. (Photo: AP)

The first flight arrived in Toronto before midnight and another will land in Montreal on Saturday. The planes, both military aircraft, will carry a total of about 300 Syrian refugees.

Greg Keoushkerian, 26, waited at the airport for his best friend who he sponsored. Keoushkerian, a Syrian refugee of Armenian descent, said he and his family have been in Canada for 10 months and didn’t bother applying for asylum in the U.S.

Justin Trudeau, left, greets Madeleine Jamkossian, right, and her father Kevork Jamkossian, refugees fleeing the Syria, during their arrival at Pearson International airport. (Photo: AP)

“Canada has been so welcoming, the U.S. doesn’t seem like that. People here respect each other here. It’s so multicultural,” he said. “All my friends are asking about Canada now and how they can come here. In two weeks there will be another flight with some of my other friends.”

Canadians eager to show their support for the newcomers weren’t deterred by the fact that they couldn’t do so face to face as the refugees were processed in a secure area. A handful of people gathered at the international arrivals gate at Pearson airport bearing signs and gifts.

Andrew Harris, 51, said he wanted to counter the fearful messaging about Muslims that has circulated since the Paris attacks. He held up a large yellow sign that read “Welcome to Canada,” saying that even if the arriving refugees don’t see it, the positive words won’t go unnoticed.

Madeleine Jamkossian, right, arrives with her family, refugees fleeing from Syria, at Pearson International airport. (Photo: AP)

The headline on the front page Thursday’s Toronto Star, Canada’s largest circulation newspaper, read: “Welcome to Canada,” with the Arabic translation below: Ahlan wa sahlan. “Welcome.”

About 800 refugees are being screened by security and health officers each day in Lebanon and Jordan.

Canada’s commitment reflects the change in government after October’s election. Former Conservative Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, who lost the Oct. 19 election to Trudeau, had declined to resettle more Syrian refugees, despite the haunting image of a drowned 3-year-old Syrian boy washed up on a Turkish beach. The boy had relatives in Canada, and the refugee crisis became a major campaign issue.

Justin Trudeau greets newly-arrived Syrian refugees Lucie Garabedian, center, her father Vanig Garabedian, second left, mother Anjilik Jaghlassian, second right, and sister Anna-Maria Garabedian, right, at Pearson International airport. (Photo: AP)

“They step off the plane as refugees, but they walk out of this terminal as permanent residents of Canada with social insurance numbers, with health cards and with an opportunity to become full Canadians,” Trudeau said. “This is something that we are able to do in this country because we define a Canadian not by a skin color or a language or a religion or a background, but by a shared set of values, aspirations, hopes and dreams that not just Canadians but people around the world share.”

Canada has long prided itself on opening its doors to asylum seekers. In times of crisis in decades past, Canada resettled refugees quickly and in large numbers. It airlifted more than 5,000 people from Kosovo in the late 1990s, more than 5,000 from Uganda in 1972 and resettled 60,000 Vietnamese in 1979-80. More than 1.2 million refugees have arrived in Canada since World War II.