Refugee

Citizens look for only one thing when they find themselves facing an unknown, unexpected and dangerous threat: leadership. They want to feel confident that the person who is in charge understands the gravity of the situation, knows what to do to handle it and, most importantly, shares their anxiety. The Greek prime minister did this and more with his address to the nation last week.

The Turkish Coast Guard has rescued 34 asylum seekers off the Aegean coast, state-run Anadolu Agency reported. 
The coast guard rescued the group of people, who were in rubber boats which had been driven to Turkish territorial waters by the Greek Coast Guard, the agency cited anonymous security sources as saying.

Kathimerini investigates the change of mood on Lesvos that was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize for its exemplary response to the first refugee arrivals of 2015.

After Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic said that Croatia was ready to take in some child refugees trapped in refugee camps on Greek islands, hostile comments on social networks condemned the idea, some claiming that parents and wider relatives would then accompany the children - some of whom might be extremists.

Berlin will take in 80 to 100 children from Greek refugee camps, an official in the German capital said on Tuesday, as concern mounts about migrants amassing on the Turkish-Greek border.

A total of 60 asylum seekers - over half of them children - were rescued off Turkey's Aegean coast, security sources said on March 8.

Turkish Coast Guard teams said in a statement that a group of Afghans in a rubber boat, including 33 children, were rescued while attempting to cross to Greek islands.

A European show of force to help secure Greece's borders coupled with extra EU cash for Turkey "will likely stabilize refugee flows in the short term," according to a note by risk consultancy think tank issued Thursday.

The European Commission will allocate € 700 million to Greece to tackle the flows of Syrian refugees seeking to enter Europe through Turkey. This was announced today by the chairman of the Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, at a joint press conference in Greece with Kyriakos Mitsotakis, the head of the European Council and the President of the European Parliament, BTA reported.

Russia on Tuesday said that Turkey was trying to push 130,000 refugees from Syria into Greece, the Interfax news agency cited the Defense Ministry as saying.

The two thirds of these refugees - that Turkey is pushing from temporary camps in Syria - are Afghans, Iraqis and Africans, not Syrians, it added. 

[Reuters]

Russia on Tuesday said that Turkey was trying to push 130,000 refugees from Syria into Greece, the Interfax news agency cited the Defence Ministry as saying.

The two thirds of these refugees - that Turkey is pushing from temporary camps in Syria - are Afghans, Iraqis and Africans, not Syrians, it added. 

[Reuters]