Refugees

Overwhelmed by an influx of asylum seekers, the authorities had failed to find a facility where the migrants could follow the 14-day quarantine rule required of every visitor from "yellow" zones, so called because of their high incidence of COVID-19. 

A new national plan for migration and refugee integration has been drafted in response to growing needs, according to Deputy Minister of Migration Policy Sofia Voultepsi. 

"Our priority is the social integration of refugees and migrants and social cohesion," she stressed Tuesday.

A Washington-based Syrian rights group filed a case with the International Criminal Court on Thursday, calling for an investigation into alleged crimes against humanity by Greece for its mistreatment of refugees.

Alarmed at the increasing frequency of expulsions and pushbacks of refugees and asylum-seekers on Europe's land and sea borders, the UN Refugee Agency, UNHCR, on Thursday called on European states to investigate and halt these practices.

Ljubljana – The National Assembly determined on Wednesday in a 51:13 vote that changes to the foreigners act tightening up conditions for residence for foreign nationals in Slovenia as well as amendments to the international protection act aiming to prevent asylum law abuses are fit for further debate. Both bills were met with mixed reactions.

The living conditions at the migrant camps on the islands of Lesvos and Kos are under scrutiny by the European Court of Human Rights, focusing in particular on the treatment of eight asylum seekers.

The court has asked the Greek government to respond to a series of questions about their treatment at these specific centers.

The Filoxenia program providing temporary accommodation to asylum seekers at state-leased hotels has ended, the Migration Ministry announced Thursday.

It said that the lease agreement with hotels across the country will be terminated within the next few days.

Police say they detained two suspects - a 38-year-old man and his 14-year-old son - in connection with a racist attack Saturday against the Oreokastro camp which houses migrant and refugee children near Thessaloniki in northern Greece. 

The two were detained after a complaint filed by a 15-year-old Syrian who stays at the camp.

One hundred and six asylum-seekers left Greece on Wednesday for Mulhouse, France, according to a Migration Ministry press release Wednesday.

The transport is part of a plan to relocate a total of 1,000 people to France, the ministry said.

So far, 275 asylum seekers and 131 unaccompanied migrant and refugee children have already been relocated to France.

The picture captured the moment a child was running to take shelter from a raging fire at Moria refugee camp