Greece announced on Saturday that it had prevented some 40,000 migrants from Turkey from illegally entering its territory through the Evros border in the country’s northeast since the beginning of the year.
“In the first four months of 2022, around 40,000 migrants tried to enter the country illegally and were prevented from doing so by the border police,” Civil Protection Minister Takis Theodorikakos told Skai TV.
The number of attempts is currently high because the level of the Evros River, which marks the border between Greece and Turkey, is particularly low.
According to Theodorikakos, Turkey “is not authorized to tolerate the trafficking of desperate people or to assist them” in their attempts to cross the border.
Greece had also announced on Monday that it had stopped some 600 people from crossing the Aegean Sea from Turkey, the biggest attempt this year.
All nine boats were seen leaving and the Greek coast guard used “audible and visual signals” to prevent them from crossing into Greek waters, Athens said. Some turned around and others were intercepted by the Turkish coast guard.
According to a source from the Ministry of Migration, the flow of migrants during the first four months of the year is almost 30% higher than in the same period last year.
More than 3,000 asylum seekers have arrived in Greece this year, including 1,100 last month, the same source said.
Source: Observadora
