IRAP Europe
Originally founded in the United States, with offices in Amman, Jordan and Beirut, Lebanon, the International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP) officially expanded its services to Europe by opening its IRAP Europe office in Berlin, Germany in 2021. The expansion was in part triggered by increasing political attacks on the U.S. resettlement program.
Since then, a team of lawyers, caseworkers, and operations staff has been dedicated to helping displaced people identify and access complementary pathways to safety in European countries through family reunification, humanitarian visas, humanitarian corridors, and private sponsorship.
As with our offices in the Americas and the Middle East, IRAP Europe uses the power of the law to help displaced people from around the world find a safe place to live and a safe way to get there. IRAP Europe has assembled a staff with vast legal training and experience in various European countries, including Germany, France, and Sweden, and has developed valuable partnerships with European NGOs that allow IRAP to continue its work on behalf of refugees and displaced people on a much wider scale.
Our Team
| Miriam Aced Senior Director – Global Ops and IRAP Europe Ops |
Kristine Rembach |
Dave O’Kelly |
| Peter Varga Legal Director – IRAP Europe |
Lina Al-Samaraee Program Coordinator |
Daniel Ayitey Senior Office and Accounts Manager |
| Elisa Costadura Staff Attorney – German Law |
Mai Greitz Staff Attorney – Swedish Law |
Therese Herrmann Advocacy Manager, Germany |
| Euphrasie Kalolwa Advocacy Manager, France |
David Loveday Staff Attorney – International Litigation |
Martin Nyman Supervising Attorney – Swedish Law |
| Nadia Sebtaoui Supervising Attorney – French Law |
Mandy Taylor Staff Attorney – French/UK Law |
Dr. Corinna Ujkašević Supervising Attorney – German Law |
Client Story
Aaron* and Miriam* were separated from their mother when she was forced to flee their home in Eritrea. Their mother was able to safely resettle in Germany, and the children stayed in a refugee camp in Sudan. Staff inside the camp had been trained by IRAP to identify cases eligible for family reunification, and Aaron and Miriam became IRAP clients.
The German government initially denied the children’s application because they did not have passports. IRAP challenged the denial in German court, explaining the dangers of requesting passports from the Eritrean government. The German government agreed to settle the case, and Aaron and Miriam were reunited with their mother in Germany in June 2021. We also began to establish a precedent to ease the passport requirement for thousands of refugee children in similar situations.
*Name changed to protect client identity.
Contact
IRAP Europe |
