Syrian New Zealanders are being unfairly targeted for searches and held for hours at a time at the country's biggest airport, a Syrian community leader claims. Ali Akil told the Herald his family members - New Zealand passport holders - had been selected for searches at Auckland International Airport. They say with a New Zealand passport we go to every single country in the world respected, we come back home and we are ill treated." He said his sister was stopped and searched at Auckland Airport in 2015. A statement to the Herald from Customs said the number of passengers searched at airports is "very low", at less than 0.2 per cent.

Source: New Zealand Herald March 19, 2017 09:19 UTC