Daily Sabah logo

Politics
Diplomacy Legislation War On Terror EU Affairs Elections News Analysis
TÜRKİYE
Istanbul Education Investigations Minorities Expat Corner Diaspora
World
Mid-East Europe Americas Asia Pacific Africa Syrian Crisis Islamophobia
Business
Automotive Economy Energy Finance Tourism Tech Defense Transportation News Analysis
Lifestyle
Health Environment Travel Food Fashion Science Religion History Feature Expat Corner
Arts
Cinema Music Events Portrait Reviews Performing Arts
Sports
Football Basketball Motorsports Tennis
Opinion
Columns Op-Ed Reader's Corner Editorial
PHOTO GALLERY
JOBS ABOUT US RSS PRIVACY CONTACT US
© Turkuvaz Haberleşme ve Yayıncılık 2023

Daily Sabah logo

عربي
  • Politics
    • Diplomacy
    • Legislation
    • War On Terror
    • EU Affairs
    • Elections
    • News Analysis
  • TÜRKİYE
    • Istanbul
    • Education
    • Investigations
    • Minorities
    • Expat Corner
    • Diaspora
  • World
    • Mid-East
    • Europe
    • Americas
    • Asia Pacific
    • Africa
    • Syrian Crisis
    • Islamophobia
  • Business
    • Automotive
    • Economy
    • Energy
    • Finance
    • Tourism
    • Tech
    • Defense
    • Transportation
    • News Analysis
  • Lifestyle
    • Health
    • Environment
    • Travel
    • Food
    • Fashion
    • Science
    • Religion
    • History
    • Feature
    • Expat Corner
  • Arts
    • Cinema
    • Music
    • Events
    • Portrait
    • Reviews
    • Performing Arts
  • Sports
    • Football
    • Basketball
    • Motorsports
    • Tennis
  • Gallery
  • Opinion
    • Columns
    • Op-Ed
    • Reader's Corner
    • Editorial
  • TV
  • Politics
  • Diplomacy
  • Legislation
  • War On Terror
  • EU Affairs
  • Elections
  • News Analysis

Greece to relocate migrants from deplorable Lesbos camp

by Agencies

ISTANBUL May 03, 2020 - 7:22 pm GMT+3
Migrants wait to board buses outside Moria camp on their way to the port of Mytilene, on the northeastern Aegean island of Lesbos, Greece, May 3, 2020. (AP Photo)
Migrants wait to board buses outside Moria camp on their way to the port of Mytilene, on the northeastern Aegean island of Lesbos, Greece, May 3, 2020. (AP Photo)
by Agencies May 03, 2020 7:22 pm
RECOMMENDED
Goettingen Central Mosque in Germany in this undated file photo. (IHA Photo)

Mosque in Germany receives threatening mail sent by neo-Nazis

anti-Muslim-hatred

Greece evacuated hundreds of migrants from a notoriously overpopulated island camp to the mainland on Sunday.

Two groups of 142 and 250 "vulnerable" migrants boarded to ferries on the island of Lesbos, according to a police source, after leaving the Moria camp where conditions were said to be deplorable.

In April, Human Rights Watch (HRW) urged Greek authorities to act quickly to ward off a potential health crisis in migrant camps lest the coronavirus take hold there.

The sites are battling rampant overcrowding, poor sanitation, lack of proper water supplies and rudimentary health care.

The European Union has asked Greece to move migrants most at risk of contracting the coronavirus from overcrowded camps on its Mediterranean islands.

Athens had opposed moving them all to the mainland, citing the absence of cases in the camps while the coronavirus was spreading elsewhere in the country.

"Authorities are getting ready to transfer a group of about 395 migrants seen as vulnerable later today to the mainland via ship," a police official, who declined to be named, said.

A transfer from the Moria camp would be the first since confinement measures were imposed on March 23 to stem the spread of COVID-19. A few days before that, around 600 migrants had been transferred to the Greek mainland.

An estimated 37,000 migrants live in dreadful conditions on five Greek islands in the Aegean Sea.

The camps were built to house 6,200 people.

Moria holds around 19,300 migrants, more than six times its capacity.

The evacuation was the first one since the lockdown has started in Greece on March 23. Before that, the last evacuation was taken place on March 20 when 600 migrants have been transferred to Athens.

Plans to alleviate overcrowding were stalled by the discovery of COVID-19 cases among migrants on the mainland.

But Greek officials now plan to move around 2,000 people from the islands, and migration minister Notis Mitarachi said recently that 10,000 had reached the mainland in the first three months of the year.

"The goal is to transfer about 2,400 from island camps to mainland Greece," a Migration Ministry official said.

On Sunday, Mitarachi paid a visit to a medical center at the Moria camp that is to test asylum-seekers for signs of the coronavirus.

Around 150 migrants on the mainland have tested positive for the virus, but up until now, no cases have been reported in the overcrowded island camps.

More than 42,000 people currently live in the overcrowded camps on the Greek islands, including about 5,500 unaccompanied minors. Around 10% of them are under 14 years old, according to police agency Europol.

The worst congestion occurs in camps on five Aegean islands near Turkey where there are more than 36,000 people with space for fewer than 6,100 people.

The European Union said on March 13 that a group of member countries had agreed to take at least 1,600 children who reached Greece traveling without their parents. But restrictions EU member nations adopted to slow the spread of the coronavirus complicated efforts to start putting the deal into effect.

To date, 10 member states – Belgium, Bulgaria, France, Croatia, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Portugal, Luxembourg and Lithuania, as well as Switzerland – are part of the initiative.

Greece’s decision to relocate unaccompanied migrant children came on April 14, the same day as a rights group described Athens' detention conditions for minors as "abusive" and called for freeing the children amid the coronavirus outbreak.

Meanwhile, Greek coast guards, frequently criticized by rights groups for their treatment of migrants, pushed 48 asylum-seekers back to Turkey, which constitutes a violation of international human rights.

According to Interior Ministry officials speaking to Anadolu Agency (AA), Turkish coast guards rescued the desperate migrants and asylum-seekers who were left to fend for themselves by the Greek guards.

The Turkish Foreign Ministry in March said, "Greece does not protect the borders of the European Union; to the contrary, (it) disgracefully tramples on the very principles and values this Union was built upon, by treating the migrants coming to its gates as enemies instead of human beings."

RECOMMENDED
Goettingen Central Mosque in Germany in this undated file photo. (IHA Photo)

Mosque in Germany receives threatening mail sent by neo-Nazis

anti-Muslim-hatred
  • shortlink copied
  • Last Update: May 04, 2020 1:00 pm
    RELATED TOPICS
    fight-against-terrorism DEUTSCHE-BANK US-LIBYA-RELATIONS
    KEYWORDS
    migration crisis greece humans rights lesbos camp coronavirus
    The Daily Sabah Newsletter
    Keep up to date with what’s happening in Turkey, it’s region and the world.
    You can unsubscribe at any time. By signing up you are agreeing to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
    Mayan pyramid and ruins in the famous Tikal National Park, Guatemala. (Getty Images Photo)

    Scientists discover 417 Mayan cities in Guatemala's forested area

    mayan-city
    President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan speaks on a live interview with ATV aHaber, Türkiye, May 26, 2023. (AA Photo)

    'Germany's arrest of Turkish journalists violates press freedom'

    TÜRKIYE-ELECTIONS

    Serbian army remains on high alert near Kosovo border

    europe

    Erdoğan wins Turkish runoff according to unofficial results

    TÜRKIYE-ELECTIONS
    No Image
    'Freedom Convoy': Canada declares state of emergency in Ottawa
    PHOTOGALLERY
    • POLITICS
    • Diplomacy
    • Legislation
    • War On Terror
    • EU Affairs
    • News Analysis
    • TÜRKİYE
    • Istanbul
    • Education
    • Investigations
    • Minorities
    • Diaspora
    • World
    • Mid-East
    • Europe
    • Americas
    • Asia Pacific
    • Africa
    • Syrian Crisis
    • İslamophobia
    • Business
    • Automotive
    • Economy
    • Energy
    • Finance
    • Tourism
    • Tech
    • Defense
    • Transportation
    • News Analysis
    • Lifestyle
    • Health
    • Environment
    • Travel
    • Food
    • Fashion
    • Science
    • Religion
    • History
    • Feature
    • Expat Corner
    • Arts
    • Cinema
    • Music
    • Events
    • Portrait
    • Performing Arts
    • Reviews
    • Sports
    • Football
    • Basketball
    • Motorsports
    • Tennis
    • Opinion
    • Columns
    • Op-Ed
    • Reader's Corner
    • Editorial
    • Photo gallery
    • Jobs
    • privacy
    • about us
    • contact us
    • RSS
    © Turkuvaz Haberleşme ve Yayıncılık 2021