2015-10-26 08:45:00

Migrant deaths continue as EU leaders pressure Greece


(Vatican Radio)  Greece is coming under pressure from the European Union to accommodate more Middle Eastern migrants and refugees, as three more of them perished in Greece’s island waters over the weekend – one woman and two children.

Listen to the report by John Carr:

They were among the estimated 48,000 who have poured into the islands of Lesbos and Chios in the past week alone, to be hastily processed and then sent on to their real destination, northern Europe. And that, despite the stormy weather that has been lashing the Aegean Sea these past few days.

Greece so far has resisted European pressure to set up more so-called ‘hot spots’ where more migrants can stay longer to be processed. 

The government here in Athens cites the ongoing Greek economic crisis as the main reason why it’s reluctant to set up bigger centres, to hold up to 50,000 people.

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, in Brussels for an emergency EU summit on the migrants problem, said Turkey must be brought into the negotiations. 

He also hinted that if the EU wanted Greece to do more, it could help ease Greek austerity.








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