| Author (Corporate) | UN: Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees |
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| Series Title | Press Release |
| Series Details | 07.08.15 |
| Publication Date | 07/08/2015 |
| Content Type | News |
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Some 124,000 refugees and migrants had arrived in Greece by sea at the end of July 2015 – a 750% increase on the same period in 2014, the UN refugee agency reported on the 7 August 2015. The majority had arrived at the islands of Lesvos, Chios, Kos, Samos and Leros The vast majority of those coming to Greece were from countries experiencing conflict or human rights violations, mainly Syria, Afghanistan, and Iraq. UNHCR said that Greece and Europe need to lead the response to this crisis, which can be resolved only through more solidarity within and outside the EU and increased alternative means to reach Europe for refugees fleeing from violence'. Greece's Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said the country was unable to cope, and called for EU help. 'The EU is being tested on the issue of Greece. It has responded negatively on the economic front – that’s my view. I hope it will respond positively on the humanitarian front', said Tsipras. The EU Borders agency Frontex sad on the 7 August 2015 that a record number of 49,550 migrants have arrived in the European Union through the Greek borders in July 2015, surpassing in a single month the number of migrants detected in the region in the entire 2014. On the 18 August 2015, the Greek government appealed to its European Union partners to come up with a comprehensive strategy to deal with the migrant crisis after 21,000 people had landed on Greek shores the previous week alone. |
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| Source Link | http://www.unhcr.org/55c4d1fc2.html |
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| Subject Categories | Justice and Home Affairs |
| Countries / Regions | Greece |
