A Syrian immigrant and his sister are looking for a warm place in the snow

Archive photo.

Polish border guards on Tuesday detained a Syrian and his sister near the Polish town of Shmyatići as they searched for a warm place after they crossed from Belarus as it snowed for the first time this winter in the forest around the border.

The 24-year-old Syrian and his 28-year-old sister, who declined to be identified, came to Belarus among thousands of migrants hoping to enter the European Union.

The bloc says that Belarus fabricated the migrant crisis on its eastern border in response to sanctions imposed by Brussels.

Belarus has repeatedly denied the accusation.

The Syrian, who had hid with his sister under a snow-covered tree in the forest, told Reuters they wanted a warm place to sit.

The Syrian said that the weather was very cold and that she and her brother would not have come if they had known that the situation would be like this.

Migrant activists covered blankets in an attempt to protect them from the cold.

The Syrian and his sister, both from Damascus, said they arrived in Belarus on November 9 and crossed into Poland days ago after being pushed by officers in Belarus to do so.

The Syrian was working as a mechanical engineer in his country, while his sister worked in art.

The Syrian, who was part of the scouts when he was young, said he used a compass, not a phone, to reach EU territory and to avoid being tracked.

He added that he and his sister had enough food but not enough water.

Activists said they helped the Syrian and his sister start the asylum process in the European Union.

Rights activists criticize Poland for returning migrants to Belarus without allowing them to apply for international protection.

Warsaw says it is Belarus that should help the migrants because they are on its territory legally, and that Belarus has rejected its offer of humanitarian aid.

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