Judge considers last-minute reprieve for thousands of Calais 'Jungle' migrants facing eviction at 7pm GMT today

Judge considers last-minute reprieve for thousands of Calais 'Jungle' migrants who face having their homes bulldozed after eviction deadline at 7pm GMT today
Up to 3,400 refugees face having their homes demolished in shanty town
French court to rule this afternoon after migrant groups appealed eviction
A judge and other officials visited site today to see conditions themselves
Sudan migrant: 'I don't want to leave because I'll be further from England'
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Thousands of migrants are facing eviction from their homes in France's Jungle camp today unless a judge grants them a last-minute reprieve.

Emotions were running high this morning as a deadline loomed for the destruction of half the 'Jungle' migrant camp in Calais.

Residents in the southern half of the grim shanty town have been given until 8pm local time (7pm GMT) today to quit their makeshift homes or face bulldozers being sent in tomorrow.

But many are refusing or unable to move.

Praying for good news: Refugee organisations are pinning their hopes on a court hearing due to take place in Lille this afternoon after challenging the eviction order
John, a 28-year-old Sudanese migrant, said: 'I don't have anywhere else to go.
'We don't want to leave Calais because we don't want to get further away from England, which is still our goal.'
Refugee organisations are pinning their hopes on a court hearing due to take place in Lille this afternoon after challenging the eviction order.


A French judge and other officials visited the camp earlier today to see conditions for themselves before making a ruling on whether the eviction should go ahead.
The issue has played into the fraught discussions about Britain's possible exit from the EU, with France under pressure to stop refugees trying to board lorries and ferries to cross the Channel.
Some British opponents of 'Brexit' say they would lose the ability to call on France to stop the flow of refugees if Britain leaves the EU.

Up to 1,000 people who have fled war, poverty and persecution are reported to be affected by the plans, but aid workers say the figure could be much higher.

The Help Refugees charity said it carried out its own analysis showing there were 3,455 people living in the affected part of the Jungle who faced being 'evicted from their homes in the midst of winter, without sufficient alternative accommodation on offer'.

A spokeswoman said: 'Our concerns remain with welfare of the unaccompanied minors.

'We have had no assurances from the French authorities that they will conduct assessments to determine best interests of these children and ensure proper safeguarding is in place before removing them from the camp and the communities they know and trust.

'We urge them to delay the demolition of the southern section of the camp until these needs are met... our concerns will be heard at the court in Lille.'

French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said the eviction would be done 'progressively, by persuasion and with respect for people's dignity'.

Some British opponents of 'Brexit' say they would lose the ability to call on France to stop the flow of refugees
The evicted migrants have been offered heated accommodation in refitted containers set up next door to the Jungle.
But many are reluctant to move there because they lack any communal spaces and movement is restricted.
They have also been offered places in around 100 accommodation centres spread around France.
At the weekend, actor Jude Law and singer Tom Odell were among famous faces who took to the stage at the camp in Calais to raise the plight of refugees.
They were joined by actress Juliet Stevenson and comedian Shappi Khorsandi at the Letters Live event.
It came after 145 celebrities including Idris Elba, Helena Bonham Carter and Benedict Cumberbatch wrote an open letter calling on Prime Minister David Cameron to help save children based there.
They want the Government to step in and allow unaccompanied children living in the camp to be reunited with their families in the UK.
Meanwhile, Eurotunnel has asked the British and French governments to reimburse it £22million (€29m) for lost revenue during the cross-Channel migrant crisis.
The Chunnel operator faced heavy disruption to its services last summer as migrants based at the Jungle made repeated bids to reach Britain.

Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary and Poland discuss a blockade to stop migrants

Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary and Poland meet to discuss creating a blockade to stop migrants arriving from Greece
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Countries known as the Visegrad group ready to help Balkans seal borders
Leaders of Bulgaria and Macedonia will also attend the meeting in Prague
Germany fears plan will create even bigger backlog of migrants in Greece
Greece to open 'hotspot' migrant centres after EU pressure to stem flow


Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary and Poland are to meet today to discuss creating a blockade to stop the influx of migrants arriving from Greece.
Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka said the countries – known collectively as the Visegrad group – were ready to help Balkan countries seal their borders.
The leaders of Bulgaria and Macedonia will also attend the meeting in Prague.

Mr Sobotka said he would also discuss the plans with the Greek foreign minister tomorrow, ahead of a summit of European leaders at the end of the week.
Apart from Hungary, central European countries have so far not seen significant numbers of migrants.


But they fear that could change if Europe's external borders stay porous, or if Germany – the main destination – were to close its own borders.
Germany has raised objections to the plan, saying that sealing Balkan borders with Greece could undermine its own approach to the crisis.

Fury: Protesters hold banners and Greek flags during a demonstration on the island of Kos against the creation of an identification and registration centre for migrants who are entering the EU through Greece
GREECE OPENS 'HOTSPOT' MIGRANT CENTRES AFTER EU PRESSURE TO CONTROL THE INFLUX
Greece will open four migrant registration centres in time for an EU summit this week as Athens comes under heavy pressure to control the massive influx to Europe.
Four of Greece's five 'hotspot' centres will formally open by Wednesday on the islands of Lesbos, Chios, Leros and Samos, which have been struggling to cope with hundreds of thousands of migrants landing from Turkey in flimsy boats, a government source said.
Each will have enough prefab housing to accommodate 1,000 arrivals for three days, during which they will be registered, have their fingerprints taken and be sorted between those eligible for asylum in the EU and those who face eventual deportation.
Security checks will attempt to prevent the entry of jihadists, a pressing concern after two of the men who carried out November's terror attacks in Paris sneaked into Europe via Greece, posing as refugees.
The fifth centre, on the island of Kos, will be set up slightly later, the source said.
Opposition from local authorities and residents, complaining that the influx has damaged their vital tourism industry, has caused delays to the construction work.
Riot police fired tear gas Sunday at protesters on the resort island who are angry over plans to open the centre.
While Greece has acknowledged delays in the opening of the centres – calling in the army to help complete them – the government insists it is already registering migrants with the help of 400 staff from EU border agency Frontex.
Berlin has focused on working with Turkey to control the migrant flow and fears the Visegrad plan would lead to an accumulation of refugees in Greece, a country already under huge strain.
Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, who will attend the EU summit in Brussels on Thursday and Friday, is under heavy pressure from EU neighbours to do more to stem the influx of migrants.
EU member states on Friday gave Athens a three-month ultimatum to remedy 'deficiencies' in controlling the influx, or effectively face suspension from the Schengen passport-free zone.
Greece has responded by planning to open four 'hotspot' registration centres ahead of the summit.
It comes as an opinion poll published today reveals that around two-thirds of Czechs oppose taking in refugees from war zones, reflecting growing anti-migrant sentiment in a country that has taken a tough stance on the issue.
Central European nations have opposed quotas for sharing asylum-seekers among EU members, and Czech President Milos Zeman is one of many leaders to have used anti-migrant rhetoric.
The latest monthly survey by the Czech Public Opinion Research Centre found 65 per cent of Czechs were against taking in war refugees, up from 50 per cent in September.
Another 28 per cent said refugees should only be accepted until they can return home.
More than one million refugees crossed into Europe last year, most of them fleeing conflicts in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan.
Mr Zeman has limited policymaking power, but has said integration of Muslim communities in the country of 10.5 million is 'practically impossible' and called the influx an 'organised invasion'.
He has also said that migrants would impose sharia law, stoning women to death for adultery and chopping thieves' hands off.
His comments have drawn criticism from the government as well as the UN human rights chief.

Disney cruise ship rescues 12 Cuban migrants near the Cayman Islands

Disney cruise ship rescues 12 Cuban migrants near the Cayman Islands after they became stranded on their makeshift boat
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Disney Wonder liner had left Miami and was en route for Grand Cayman
It then came across 12 suspected migrants stranded on a makeshift boat
The cruise ship rescued the men who were struggling in the water
They were taken to Grand Cayman where they were handed to authorities


A Disney cruise ship stopped en route to the Cayman Islands so it could rescue 12 men suspected of being migrants, who were stranded on a rickety makeshift vessel near Cuba.
The Disney Wonder boat had set off from Miami and was headed for Grand Cayman, when it came across the men on Saturday evening.
They were struggling to stay afloat in the water on their 'rustic' vessel and were taken aboard the Disney liner, which has 11 decks boasting restaurants, pools and other activities.

When the ship reached Grand Cayman, the 12 men were then handed over to the authorities there.
U.S. Coast Guard 7th District spokesman Jon-Paul Rios told CNN that the migrants were all Cuban and were using a 'rustic' vessel.
He noted that rustic is the term authorities use to describe dangerous or unseaworthy boats.


However, he added it is unclear whether the migrants were trying to make their way to the United States.
The incident comes as cruise ships have agreed to contact the U.S. Coast Guard if they come into contact with migrants.
Often the cruise liners will pick up the migrants and take them to the ship's next port of call and hand them over to authorities.
However, it is not the first time a Disney cruise has rescued migrants as in 2013, a group of eight were picked up off the coast of Key West.

Immigration from Cuba to the U.S. has spike dramatically in the past year since Havana and Washington announced they would restore diplomatic relations.
Many Cuban migrants say they are keen to make the journey now for fear if the relations do not continue, it could bring an end to the U.S. policies that given them privileged treatment.
Backers of the United States' Cuban Adjustment Act say it offers refuge to islanders fleeing Cuba's communist system.
However, Havana argues that the policy encourages Cubans to risk dangerous migratory voyages and causes a brain drain of many the country's youngest and brightest.