Greece to set up refugee hotspots on five islands

Greece will accept EU assistance in monitoring its Aegean Sea borders and processing Middle Eastern refugees.

Greece to accept EU border control. Image by Dalibor Tomic / CC BY 2.0

On Greece’s request, EU’s Frontex agency will send border patrols and emergency workers to the Aegean islands as well as the northern border with Macedonia. The decision came after recent calls from some EU member countries to suspend Greece from the Schengen passport-free travel zone because of the lack of protection of its external borders. The Greek government has also passed an emergency law to allow setting up refugee screening centres on five islands (Chios, Kos, Leros, Lesvos and Samos), where new asylum seekers will be registered. Read more: bloomberg.com  and politico.eu