Greece has taken drastic measures in response to a surge in North African migrants, suspending asylum applications for three months. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis stated that all boat arrivals from the region will be arrested and detained. This decision follows an alarming rise in migrant numbers, with over 9,000 arrivals reported on the southern islands since the beginning of 2025—a staggering increase of 350% compared to the previous year.
Mitsotakis emphasized the need to send a strong message to traffickers, asserting that those attempting the sea journey may waste their investments as reaching Greece becomes increasingly difficult. "This emergency situation requires emergency response measures," he said, echoing legal approaches used in 2020 to halt crossings from Turkey's border. Migration Minister Thanos Plevris reinforced this narrative, declaring on X that the message to migrants is clear: "stay where you are, we do not accept you."
The recent influx has placed a significant strain on resources in Crete, where 2,000 migrants recently landed, and over 500 were rescued from the sea just this week. Local Coast Guard personnel express that they are overwhelmed, describing conditions as "suffocating." Some migrants are temporarily housed in a market hall, with reports highlighting that among them are families with young children.
Due to the peak tourist season, transferring migrants to facilities elsewhere has proven challenging, exacerbating the logistical crisis faced by authorities. Moreover, discussions intended to address these migration challenges with Libyan officials faced obstacles, as a rival Libyan government blocked entry to the ministers from Greece, Italy, and Malta.
Despite critiques from human rights organizations, Mitsotakis stated that Greece's army is prepared to collaborate with Libyan authorities to curb boat departures, redirecting the narrative away from humanitarian considerations as numerous reports detail the inhumane conditions within Libyan detention camps. Amnesty International condemned these governmental actions, underscoring the violation of migrant rights and dignity amid ongoing European attempts to control migration flows.
