Greece blocks 35,000 migrants, plans to deport arrivals after March 1

By Lefteris Papadimas, Bulent Usta

 

Migrants, who are part of a group who arrived in the previous days after crossing part of the Aegean Sea from Turkey to Greece, wait for an identification process before being transported to the mainland on a Greek Navy vessel from the port of Mytilene, on the island of Lesbos, Greece, March 5, 2020. REUTERS/Elias Marcou

 

KASTANIES, Greece/EDIRNE, Turkey (Reuters) - Greece has repulsed nearly 35,000 migrants trying to cross onto its territory illegally since Turkey opened its border nearly a week ago, government sources said on Thursday, as it prepares to deport hundreds of others who made it through.

 

Thousands of migrants have made for Greece since Ankara said on Feb. 28 that it would let migrants cross its borders into Europe, reneging on a commitment to hold them on its territory under a 2016 deal with the European Union.

 

Ankara has accused Greek forces of shooting dead four migrants. a charge rejected by Athens, which says Turkish forces are helping the migrants to cross the border. Both sides used tear gas at the Kastanies border post on Wednesday.

 

Turkey’s interior minister, Suleyman Soylu, visited Edirne province bordering Greece on Thursday and announced the deployment of 1,000 special police to the area to halt the pushback of migrants towards its territory.

 

Soylu, who said on Wednesday that Turkey was preparing a case at the European Court of Human Rights over Greece’s treatment of migrants, accused Greek forces of wounding 164 people and pushing back nearly 5,000 into Turkey.

 

The situation at the Kastanies border crossing was calm on Thursday. Migrants - many of whom are from Afghanistan and Pakistan as well as Syria and other Arab nations - huddled in tents and makeshift camps on the Turkish side of the border.

 

Greek border guards rebuffed nearly 7,000 attempts in the last 24 hours alone, taking the total since Feb. 29 to 34,778 and the number of arrests of those who got through to 244, the Greek government sources said.

 

Migrants who arrived in Greece illegally after March 1 will be transferred to the northern city of Serres and deported back to their own countries, Greek Migration Minister Notis Mitarachi said late on Wednesday.

 

“Our aim is to return them to their countries,” he told the Athens News Agency.

 

CRITICISM

 

Mitarachi also said migrants who entered Greece prior to Jan. 1, 2019 and are living on its Aegean islands would be transferred to the mainland in the coming days.

 

Athens announced on March 1 that it would not accept any new asylum applications for a month following the build-up of migrants at the border. This has triggered criticism from human rights agencies.

 

The Aegean Sea remained choppy on Thursday and there were no further sightings of dinghies carrying migrants to Lesbos and other Greek islands from the nearby Turkish coast.

 

Lesbos already hosts more than 20,000 asylum seekers, many of them living in filthy conditions in overcrowded camps.

 

Greece and the EU accuse Turkey of deliberately goading the migrants to cross the border as a way of pressuring Brussels into offering more money or supporting Ankara’s geopolitical aims in the Syrian conflict.

 

Turkey, which already hosts 3.6 million Syrian refugees and faces another influx from an upsurge in fighting in northwest Syria, says it cannot take in any more and complains that EU aid falls well short of what is needed for the refugees.

 

President Tayyip Erdogan discussed the migrant issue with senior EU officials in Ankara on Wednesday but his spokesman said the Europeans had made “no concrete proposition” on how to resolve the crisis.

 

Ankara’s change in policy towards the migrants on its soil came after at least 33 Turkish soldiers were killed by Russian-backed Syrian government forces in an air strike in Syria.

 

Erdogan flew to Moscow on Thursday for talks with Russia’s President Vladimir Putin over a potential ceasefire in Syria’s Idlib, where their militaries are facing off in a war that has displaced nearly a million people in three months.

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2020-03-05

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There are probably a few million more just waiting to see Greece/ EU give up and let them through. IMO this is the make or break moment for the EU.

I read somewhere there are about 17 million refugees in the world and they'd probably all like to go to the EU or the USA.

Chancellor Kurz from Austria spoke out clearly who's to blame for the situation and what will happen if the "refugee" invasion from 2015 replicates:

 

"If president Erdogan will be the winner who decides if tens of thousands people storm Greece and the European Union or not, then hundreds of thousands will follow and Europe without inside borders will be history..."

 

Here the complete speach in german:

https://www.theeuropean.de/sebastian-kurz/sebastian-kurz-wir-durfen-erdogan-nicht-nachgeben/

If the EU were serious about discouraging this invasion, they would give Greece the financial assistance and resources needed to send all these people back in short order. I don't think for a minute that will happen and Greece will have to continue suffering on the front line.

 

I could wish that the UK, no longer bound by EU collectivist action, and a long-time historical ally of Greece, would do something to help, but with Boris Johnson's Turkish background and close affiliation, I guess that is too much to hope for.

 

 

57 minutes ago, thaibeachlovers said:

There are probably a few million more just waiting to see Greece/ EU give up and let them through. IMO this is the make or break moment for the EU.

I read somewhere there are about 17 million refugees in the world and they'd probably all like to go to the EU or the USA.

Not refugees illegal economic migrants breaking the law, probably 50 million just in Africa that would want to up and move if this lot get in

Edited March 5, 20206 yr by Orton Rd

4 hours ago, thaibeachlovers said:

There are probably a few million more just waiting to see Greece/ EU give up and let them through. IMO this is the make or break moment for the EU.

I read somewhere there are about 17 million refugees in the world and they'd probably all like to go to the EU or the USA.

How cute you read it from somewhere. It was Sputnik, wasn't it?

 

I find it nice, how prepared EU has been this time. 

 

Not only Greece has reacted fast to Turkey's abuse of refugees, but as whole EU has send money and loads of border control people from various countries to secure EU's borders.

 

Pretty much saying that what happened in 2015 is not going to happen again.

 

5 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

Turkey, which already hosts 3.6 million Syrian refugees and faces another influx from an upsurge in fighting in northwest Syria, says it cannot take in any more

Maybe Turkey then should consider withdraw their troops instead of instigating the fights.

 

 

3 hours ago, Susco said:

Maybe Turkey then should consider withdraw their troops instead of instigating the fights.

 

 

Idlib was set up as a killing zone over a few years by the Syrians and Russians providing 'safe passages' from other conflict zones within Syria.  The aggressors in Idlib Province are the Syrians and Russian,  it is their actions which has generated the refugee exodus. Turkey's counter actions were to try & protect themselves from an anticipated massive influx of refugees.

 

Just been announced Turkey and Russia have a agreed a ceasefire & to try and establish safety zones for the refugees within Idlib. Probably likely the killing with continue, at least by the Syrian dictatorship..

 

Idlib is the last stronghold of islamistic man slaughters using civilians as human shields.

 

So - according to some  - if Syria attempts to regain power of SYRIAN territory, it's Syria who's the aggressor, not the ISIS/Al Quaeda killers and their turkish allies.

 

A good part of those fleeing from there now will be hardcore islamists. Refugees welcome.

3 hours ago, simple1 said:

Idlib was set up as a killing zone over a few years by the Syrians and Russians providing 'safe passages' from other conflict zones within Syria.  The aggressors in Idlib Province are the Syrians and Russian,  it is their actions which has generated the refugee exodus. Turkey's counter actions were to try & protect themselves from an anticipated massive influx of refugees.

 

Just been announced Turkey and Russia have a agreed a ceasefire & to try and establish safety zones for the refugees within Idlib. Probably likely the killing with continue, at least by the Syrian dictatorship..

Syria WILL regain it's territory sooner or later, short of Turkey declaring war, and it could all be over in short order if the rebel fighters stopped and negotiated a withdrawal to Turkey. Syria is within it's territorial rights to regain it's territory, and Turkey is supporting rebels. The responsibility for what happens to innocents in Idlib lies with Turkey.

The alternative is illegal occupation by Turkey and further deaths.

Hungary has found border fences/walls very effective. Greece should take note and copy.

Edited March 6, 20206 yr by AgMech Cowboy

1 hour ago, thaibeachlovers said:

Syria WILL regain it's territory sooner or later, short of Turkey declaring war, and it could all be over in short order if the rebel fighters stopped and negotiated a withdrawal to Turkey. Syria is within it's territorial rights to regain it's territory, and Turkey is supporting rebels. The responsibility for what happens to innocents in Idlib lies with Turkey.

The alternative is illegal occupation by Turkey and further deaths.

Perhaps so, but hopefully the Russians and Syrians will in the meantime cease attacking civilians and civilian infrastructure such as schools and hospitals. The responsibility of what happens to the estimated one million civilian refugees resides with Russia, EU and Turkey - IMO Assad is nothing more than a Russian proxy.

 

Looking beyond Idlib is the future of 25% of Syrian territory held by the Kurds - have to wait & see if the US ultimately abandons them, possible if trump wins the 11/20 elections.

23 minutes ago, AgMech Cowboy said:

Hungary has found border fences/walls very effective. Greece should take note and copy.

Hungary is landlocked; Greece has over 1000 islands to protect.

 

Greece is right in the front line; Hungary is over 1000 kilometers away.

Edited March 6, 20206 yr by RickBradford
Spelling

7 hours ago, simple1 said:

Idlib was set up as a killing zone over a few years by the Syrians and Russians providing 'safe passages' from other conflict zones within Syria.  The aggressors in Idlib Province are the Syrians and Russian,  it is their actions which has generated the refugee exodus. Turkey's counter actions were to try & protect themselves from an anticipated massive influx of refugees.

 

Just been announced Turkey and Russia have a agreed a ceasefire & to try and establish safety zones for the refugees within Idlib. Probably likely the killing with continue, at least by the Syrian dictatorship..

 

Sure. Turkey just inviting themselves and their forces in and killing who they don't like just to keep the peace!

 

Erdogan is innocent - my <deleted> is he!

1 hour ago, RickBradford said:

Hungary is landlocked; Greece has over 1000 islands to protect.

 

Greece is right in the front line; Hungary is over 1000 kilometers away.

 

Greece must secure it's land borders. 

 

The Islands and coastal borders are more difficult. Especially as Turkey turns a blind eye / facilitates Turkish smugglers profiteering from these illegal economic migrants.

 

Difficult but possible.

9 minutes ago, Baerboxer said:

Greece must secure it's land borders. 

It desperately tries to.

But instead of providing them with money and all they need the german hyper-moralist "volksfront" regime already starts critizising Greece because of their use of force. As always without telling them how to avoid a breakethrough of thousands of violent "refugugees" supplied with turkish teargas grenades.

If Greece again is left alone with the problem, they should open the border and let the invaders pass because none of them wants to stay there. Most of them will head to Germany and Skandinavia then

 

 The Islands and coastal borders are more difficult. Especially as Turkey turns a blind eye / facilitates Turkish smugglers profiteering from these illegal economic migrants.

Difficult but possible.

It's impossible IMO if you're not willing to sink the boats and that never will happen.

2 hours ago, AgMech Cowboy said:

Hungary has found border fences/walls very effective. Greece should take note and copy.

Not much good in the ocean...mind you mines would be an idea

56 minutes ago, Baerboxer said:

 

Sure. Turkey just inviting themselves and their forces in and killing who they don't like just to keep the peace!

 

Erdogan is innocent - my <deleted> is he!

Who are the innocents Turkey is killing in Idlib Province? Never claimed Erdogan is 'innocent'

The idea of free movement within the EU is on borrowed time as the economic migrant entitlement/abuse issues plus now long overdue plagues etc. will see it consigned to history unless Brussels wakes up from fantasy dream land. The whole notion and values of the EU, which they are doggedly sticking to instead of modernizing, are totally outdated and belong in the 80s. Bend with the wind or break with it as is often said. Problem is, that these EU elites (that belong in the 80s/90s) are inhabiting a bubble and don't see that the writing is on the wall. If Brussels isn't careful they will end up with 20 or more Nigel Farage types raising all sorts of problems soon.

 

Sorry to be a bubble popper, but reality is incoming on many issues and the denial brigade will drown along with their sand castles on the beach of reality. Brussels, by sticking it's head in the sand will facilitate the rise of their fears, which is the right or much tougher national governments and they will lose control of the direction/narrative plus will be able to do nothing about it. The left still hasn't learned that you need to be center ground too on subjects and that the further you go to the political extremes, the more you hasten your own demise. People like center-left on some issues but are center-right on others. No-one to blame but themselves as the left has been in control for the last 30 years in one form or another, be it heavy or light. And regarding the UK conservative party, it has only just become conservative again after a 25 year break of being a liberal light party when Major took over.

Edited March 6, 20206 yr by Brigand

sad story but the locals on lesbos are fed up to the back teeth with the arrivals at night and screwing their island for good