Lowest number of asylum seekers since 1994

The number of applications for asylum in Slovakia decreased for the fourth consecutive year in 2016, falling to number 146 - the lowest since 1994, wrote ČTK citing data from the Interior Ministry last weekend. The number represents a fall by more than a half when compared to 2015. When looking into the number of people who were granted asylum in Slovakia, it grew significantly last year with 167 accepted asylums seekers compared to 8 in 2015. This increase is a result of the resettlement of 149 Assyrian Christians from Iraq to Slovakia. However, some of these people have already decided to return to their home country. Since becoming an independent country in 1993, Slovakia has granted asylum to 820 people.