Migration minister admits refugees may be trapped in Greece for years

Addressing an emergency meeting of Greek mayors on Wednesday, migration policy minister Yannis Mouzalas made a shocking admission that trapped refugees and immigrants in Greece may remain in the country for the next two or three years.

Mouzalas said Greece was de facto no longer a transit country following recent developments and that “until the situation clears up we must take them off the streets and provide accommodation”. He added that the Idomeni border crossing in northern Greece will remain closed. “The refugee crisis is like an earthquake, a fire and a flood all rolled into one” the minister added in dramatic style.

An estimated 10 000 refugees and migrants have gathered at a makeshift camp of Idomeni, in Greece’s northern border with Macedonia while it is estimated that there are currently more than 25 000 migrants in Greece overall.

The Greek government is searching for sites that could be used to house refugees and migrants imminently with the assistance of local government authorities.

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(Photo: International Organization for Migration)

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