Thousands of migrants trapped in Greece as neighbors tighten restrictions
- 8 years ago
Thousands of migrants were stranded in northern Greece on Monday after neighboring Macedonia demanded additional identification from people seeking to cross the border and head to Western Europe, witnesses said.
About 5,000 people massed at two locations in northern Greece, close to the border with Macedonia, while aid groups urged another 4,000, who arrived on the Greek mainland from outlying islands, not to head to north for fear of creating a bottleneck.
"Our biggest fear is that the 4,000 migrants who are in Athens head up here and the place will become overcrowded," said Antonis Rigas, a coordinator of the medical relief charity Medicins Sans Frontieres .
Vienna has angered other EU members by imposing a cap on asylum claims, limiting the number of migrants permitted into its territory to 3,200 per day, and introducing a daily cap of 80 asylum claims.
About 5,000 people massed at two locations in northern Greece, close to the border with Macedonia, while aid groups urged another 4,000, who arrived on the Greek mainland from outlying islands, not to head to north for fear of creating a bottleneck.
"Our biggest fear is that the 4,000 migrants who are in Athens head up here and the place will become overcrowded," said Antonis Rigas, a coordinator of the medical relief charity Medicins Sans Frontieres .
Vienna has angered other EU members by imposing a cap on asylum claims, limiting the number of migrants permitted into its territory to 3,200 per day, and introducing a daily cap of 80 asylum claims.