New Belgian Law Would Curb Illegal Immigration

The Belgian Parliament’s House of Representatives voted decisively Thursday in favor of a new law to curb the number of foreigners coming into the country seeking political asylum.

The vote came a week after five Iranians at Brussels’ airport slit their wrists on being told that Belgium had rejected their request for asylum and that they were being sent out of the country.

The bill goes before the Senate next week, where it is widely expected to be passed into law.

The bill would hold airlines responsible for screening refugees before they embark for Belgium, force them to return those found without their papers in order to the point of departure and toughen conditions for entry.