Tag Archive for 'aegean'

Paralysed and stored at the margins: Refugees in Greece forced to survive snow and cold

Moria Camp / Stratis Balaksas EPA

Moria Camp / Stratis Balaksas EPA

Following the closure of the Balkan-Route on March 2016 thousands of refugees who had been waiting for months in the tents in Idomeni were transferred and ‘parked’ in mass camps in northern Greece, in Greater Athens area and other parts of mainland Greece. Although they promised them better conditions than in the jungle of Idomeni or the informal tent camp in Piraeus Port, as well as quick legal transfers to other European countries, many of them still wait until today under devastating conditions. It is winter, and still hundreds live in tents or without heating while struggling with snow, heavy rains and strong winds. Most of them have some of their relatives waiting for them in other EU-countries and the other half remaining back home in war trying to survive. Meanwhile the EU tries to invest just as much in the improvements of refugees’ living conditions and asylum procedures in Greece as needed to re-establish Dublin returns to Greece as announced for 15. March 2017. It is the same infamous mass camps, which refugees are trying to survive now, where Europe seemingly plans to send Dublin returnees. A closer look shows the enormous tragedy resulting from this cynical plan to keep refugees stored at Europe’s inner borders unsafe, under devastating conditions and far from their relatives.

no shoes

no shoes

Imprisoned in camps that are located in abandoned industrial sites and military camps, forced to live far from local society, exposed to inadequate and undignified housing and harsh weather conditions, the currently 62.000 refugees living in Greece escaped war and conflict, hunger and poverty in order to end up in Europe without safety and without dignity, without sufficient food, without heating, without any hope to find a job and create a new life. They got stuck in limbo when the Balkan corridor was closed in March 8th 2016 and mainstream politics were transformed back from a short upsurge of a “welcome” trend to the old “closed borders” attitude confronted with the massive militarization of borders. In the Hot Spots on the islands of the Aegean and the mass camps on the mainland, these refugees since early 2016 get managed by the army, government officials, the UNHCR and international NGOs as a faceless mass identified by a number on a tent or a container and sorted by nationalities, and into the groups of ‘deportable’ and ‘non-deportable’, ‘undocumented’ and ‘documented’.
Continue reading ‘Paralysed and stored at the margins: Refugees in Greece forced to survive snow and cold’

Aegean islands: Government evacuates thousands from Hot Spots

copyright: Marily Stroux

copyright: Marily Stroux

The Greek government yesterday emptied the Hot Spots on the islands of the Aegean in order to start implementing the newly decided measures as concluded during the EU-Summit with Turkey on 17./18.th. About 2,700 were transferred from Chios, 4,000 from Lesvos and 800 from Samos. Tragically, as activists report, the refugees were not informed where they would be brought and were highly stressed and in fear.


Thessaloniki port Continue reading ‘Aegean islands: Government evacuates thousands from Hot Spots’

11.07.14 Shipwreck near Samos: 6 dead, 23 survivors and more than 8 missing

On the early noon of Sunday 11th of July a refugee boat got in distress 10nm North East of Karlovasi, Samos. The refugee boat carrying approximately 35-40 people was a sailing boat according to the testimonies of the survivors.
The causes of the shipwreck are not yet clear. The media speak about bad weather conditions, overloaded boat, panic, sudden movement of the passengers etc as possible causes.

On Sunday there are 15 survivors in the Greek side (9 were brought to Chios, 6 to Samos) and 8 survivors on the Turkish side (2 near the shipreck area and 6 norhernof this area). In Samos Hospital (ICU) there is a minor in intensive care. They were trying to transfer him to Mytilini ICU but his severe health condition made the transfer impossible.

2 corpses were found Friday on the Greek side: a dead man and a dead woman and 2 more bodies (of a man and a boy) were found on Saturday also on the Greek side. Another two corpses were found on the Turkish side.

At least 8 persons are still missing.

The rescue operation was carried out with 4 Greek coast guard boats, 1 helicopter and 5 boats that were sailing in the area that day.

Until now there was no information about the nationalities of the survivors or their health condition.
Continue reading ‘11.07.14 Shipwreck near Samos: 6 dead, 23 survivors and more than 8 missing’

New arrivals of refugees on the Aegean islands April (16-30) and May 2014

1-31. May 2014

31.5. Mytilini 18 refugees and one alleged facilitator were arrested
30.5. Mytilini 48 refugees were arrested
29.5. Limnos 36 refugees and 2 alleged facilitators were arrested
29.5. Chios 15 refugees were arrested
29.5. Aghios Efstratios 66 refugees were arrested
28.5. Samos a group of 32 and a group of 25 refugees were arrested
28.5. MYtilini a group of 32 and a group of 22 refugees were arrested
28.5. Rhodes 6 refugees and one alleged facilitator were arrested Continue reading ‘New arrivals of refugees on the Aegean islands April (16-30) and May 2014’

New arrivals in Greece / 1-15. April 2014

Tuesday 15.4.14 in Kos arrived 7 refugees while one man was shot. The police claims he was the smuggler.
Tuesday 15.4.14 in Chios 18 refugees arrived
Tuesday 15.4.14 in Mitilini 15 refugees arrived in a wooden boat, one 22 year old person was arrested being accused of “human smuggling”

Monday 14.4.14 in Kalimnos 8 refugees arrived
Monday 14.4.14 in Kos 10 refugees arrived
Monday 14.4.14 in Mitilini 26 refugees arrived
Continue reading ‘New arrivals in Greece / 1-15. April 2014’

Pro Asyl / New Report released: ‘Pushed back’

Pushed Back – systematic human rights violations against refugees in the aegean sea and at the greek turkish land border
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On the Greek-Turkish land border refugees are systematically refouled with brutal, shocking and systematic violations of human rights: ‘When they left us in the Turkish waters they made waves again and six of us – all men – fell into the sea. The Greeks saw that, but they didn’t help, they just left.’ PRO ASYL documents these systematic pushback in the report “Pushed Back – systematic human rights violations against refugees in the aegean sea and the greek-turkish land border”. With few exceptions, all documented pushback took place in the area of ​​operations of Frontex. PRO ASYL raises the question of the involvement of Frontex on the human rights violations and calls: Frontex must end its operations in Greece.

Download Report (in English)
Summary (in German)

Another 58 refugees arrive in the Aegean

Lesvos: 10
hellenic coast guard

Agathonisi: 27 (17 men, 6 women and 4 minors)

hellenic coast guard

Leros: 21 (18 men, 1 woman and 2 minors)
hellenic coast guard

New arrivals on Lesvos and other Aegean islands in numbers

Among the arrested are mainly Afghans, Syrians and Somalis – all classical refugee populations. (for arrests by nationalities nationwide see also statistics by the greek police in greek)

By the coast guard arrested migrants for illegal entry
not included are arrests by the police

Lesvos
June 6th: 75
June 5th: 30 (24 men, 03 women και 03 children from Syria and Afghanistan)
June 4th: 42 (among them families, women, a baby etc. from Afghanistan, Syria and Somalia)
May 19th: no numbers available
May 17th: 41 (37 men, 01 woman and 03 minors)
May 13th: no numbers available
May 11th: 19
May 7th: 31 (22 men, 06 women και 03 minors),
May 2nd: 13 (08 men and 05 women)
May 1st: 14
Continue reading ‘New arrivals on Lesvos and other Aegean islands in numbers’

Lostatborder Report: now also in German!

lostatborder (in german)

Three migrants found dead at the coast of Chios

The first two corpses were found on Sunday 13th of January at 9 o ‘clock in the morning by fishermen in two different beaches of the island Chios. A third corpse was found by the coast guard around 2pm at yet another beach. According to first information by the Coroner the persons died of drowning within the last 48 hours before being found.

At the meantime on Saturday 12th of January three migrants were found alive on the island Panagia Oinousson inside fish cages. They are from Palestine and Iran. As two of them reported they had tried to reach Chips island from Cesme in turkey in the night of Thursday. Their boat turned around and they swam for more than 10 hours to reach the island. It is yet unknown if there were more persons inside the same boat.

newsit (in greek)