Official data: 43 000 refugees currently in Greece
17.03.2016 09:35 Greece SigmaLive
According to sources from the Greek police, the refugees who crossed the borders into FYROM from a point along the borderlines between Greece and FYROM were being led by an organised group of activists promoting the policy of open borders.
The 600 refugees who passed into FYROM had received a leaflet while in Idomeni camp with directions on where to go to enter into the neighbouring country.
Meanwhile, the situation at Idomeni is deteriorating rapidly day by day with the Greek government desperately trying to convince the refugees to leave for other hot spots set up by authorities in inner land Greece. Numerous NGOs are providing what aid they can to alleviate the suffering of the refugees.
Two of the refugees who were sent back from FYROM to Greece talked about their ordeal on the other side, speaking of brutal treatment by the FYROM military. One refugee said the soldiers would force them to sit down for hours upon hours and were constantly screaming at them.
In the meantime, the situation in the port of Piraeus is starting to resemble that of Idomeni, as port authorities estimate nearly 3,500 refugees and illegal immigrants have camped there, with hundreds more arriving each day from the islands in the eastern Aegean.
According to the current official data, nearly 43,000 refugees and illegal immigrants are in Greece, while the authorities hope to have nine new refugee reception centres capable of hosting 8,000 people. The Greek Ministry of Interior called on the prefect of Crete to suggest regions on the island appropriate for refugee reception centres.
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http://www.sigmalive.com/en/news/greece/142915/official-data-43-000-refugees-currently-in-greece#.dpuf
