Finland's prime minister has offered to open his home to refugees, a symbolic gesture as Europe attempts to deal with an influx of people fleeing conflict and violence in the Middle East.
Juha Sipilä told the press on Saturday that refugees would be able to stay in his home in Kempele, in the middle region of Finland, starting in early 2016. Sipilä is a former telecom company CEO and has served as prime minister since May.
[seealso slug=http://sale-online.click/2015/09/03/refugee-crisis-how-to-help/%5D%3C/p%3E%3Cp%3EThe statement comes after Finland's government said that it expects up to 30,000 refugees to enter the country, about double the original estimate. The country is currently trying to place people who have arrived seeking asylum, a process that often takes at least six months.
The influx of refugees has caused some political strife in the country. Sipilä's statement marks a strong stance of support for those choosing to embrace refugees.
Europe has been struggling to deal with thousands of people who have fled a variety of countries, primarily Syria and Afghanistan. Though a relatively small number of refugees have applied for asylum in Finland so far, neighboring Sweden has seen the most asylum-seekers per capita since 2011.
European countries have been discussing how best to handle the crisis, with talks set to be hosted by Germany on how to distribute migrants and refugees around the continent.
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