Greek Asylum Service

Debates over the asylum claims of Syrian refugees in our country and across Europe have been sparked from the first moment the fall of the Assad regime. The asylum application process is temporarily “frozen” for thousands of Syrians who are in our country, as the main argument for their asylum applications, persecution by the Assad regime, may be unfounded.

The European Asylum Support Office (EASO) will boost its operational deployments this year, with up to 550 personnel deployed in Greece, 150 in Italy, 120 in Cyprus and 60 in Malta, the agency said in a press release Tuesday.

Greece's Asylum Service is struggling with a backlog of more than 62,000 cases while an estimated 5,500 new applications are submitted every year by people entering the country, Kathimerini understands.

Hundreds of refugees stranded in Greece have to put up with long delays in reuniting with their relatives in other European countries.

Reference is made to an article published by Kathimerini on 16 June 2018, entitled "EASO probe hampers asylum procedures." The article makes various inaccurate and misleading assertions that the European Asylum Support Office (EASO) would like to correct.

A total of 2,711 people were given refugee status last year by the Greek Asylum Service, while another 275 were awarded protection upon appeal, according to data published Tuesday.

In comparison, 3,995 people were recognized as refugees in 2015. Another 474 gained recognition after an appeals process.

The Canadian Embassy in Greece, in collaboration with the City of Athens and with the participation of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Solidarity Now and the Greek Film Archive, is hosting "Twice Trapped: Discrimination among Asylum Applicants," a special public event that will address the realities faced by lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and/or intersex (LGBTI)

Figures published on Thursday by the Greek Asylum Service showed that the number of applications for protection spiked by 593 percent in November compared with the monthly average for 2015.

Authorities dealing with the immigration problem are concerned as an estimated 2,500 Pakistani migrants have disappeared from reception centers from Aegean islands, apparently fleeing due to fears that they will be deported.

In the bid to ease pressure on the eastern Aegean islands, Athens is reportedly examining ways to allow the transfer of refugees and migrants to enclosed camps on the mainland without infringing on the deal signed between the European Union and Turkey in March aimed at containing flows.