Refugees forcibly evicted from sheltering church go on hunger strike to draw attention to their plight

The 19 Iraqi rejected asylum seekers arrested early Thursday morning have stopped eating, according to the men’s families.

Agri Kurdistani, whose girlfriend’s brother is among the refugees, said the men had not  eaten since they were arrested, public broadcaster DR reports.

He said the men, who were part of a group of 50 people who had sought to avoid deportation by seeking shelter in Brorson’s Church in the Nørrebro district in May, would continue their strike for as long as they could.

Other Iraqis living Denmark have reportedly also begun hunger strikes in sympathy with the refugees.