Frontex: Number of migrants arriving in Greece dropped 90% in April, just 2,700 arrivals

May 13, 2016 Politics Comments Off on Frontex: Number of migrants arriving in Greece dropped 90% in April, just 2,700 arrivals 83 Views

The number of migrants arriving in Greece dropped 90 percent in April, EU border agency Frontex said on Friday, in a sign that a deal with Turkey to send back those who make the sea journey between the two countries is working.

“The drop in the number of arrivals on the Greek islands was dramatic. The total for all of April is well below the number of people we often saw reaching just the island of Lesbos on a daily basis during last year’s peak months,” said Frontex Executive Director Fabrice Leggeri.Syrians again accounted for the largest share of the migrants coming to the Greek islands, trailed by nationals from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iraq.However nothing good occurrs without something bad and as everyone expected smugglers, refugees and migrants found another way to reach Europe: Italy!”Due to the significant drop in arrivals on the Aegean islands in April, the number of migrants reaching Italy exceeded the totals for Greece for the first time since June 2015,” said the Frontex adding that “the reversal occurred despite the fact that 8 370 migrants detected on the Central Mediterranean route represented a 13% fall from March and a nearly 50% drop compared to the same month of 2015.”

Nationals of Eritrea, Egypt and Nigeria accounted for the largest share of migrants on this route, with no new signs of a significant shift of migrants from the Eastern Mediterranean route.

With regards to the Western Balkans, the Frontex notes that the significantly reduced number of migrants allowed to enter FYROM from Greece continued to affect the rest of the Western Balkan route. “The number of migrants at EU’s external borders in the region fell by a quarter in April compared to March to 3 830. It was also slightly more than half the figure recorded in April 2015.”

Under the EU Turkey Deal refugees and migrants arriving in Greece after March 20th are supposed to be sent back to Turkey but the majority of the new arrivals submitted asylum applications and will stay in Greece until the procedure is over.

There are currently 55,000 registered refugees and migrants trapped in Greece. The real number is estimated 60,000-70,000 people.

PS too bad, the EU Turkey Deal will not happen…

Frontex: Number of migrants arriving in Greece dropped 90% in April, just 2,700 arrivals

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