FIVE Iraqis two women and three young children who had burned their passports, tickets and ID cards at Moscow airport before boarding a flight for Havana sought political asylum at Shannon airport yesterday.
Seven other people on the Aeroflot flight three Latvians and four Belarussians also asked for asylum.
The group was taken to a guest house in Ennis where they are being cared for by the Irish Red Cross and the Mid Western Health Board. Their applications for asylum are being processed by immigration personnel. An official said this process could take up to two years.