The Greek government decided to transfer thousands of refugees to the port of Kavala, only one day after Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras openly admitted that the country would not be able to deal with the refugee crisis on its own. Overall, 1,700 refugees disembarked in Kavala on Saturday, November 7 and another 9,000 were transferred to the port of Piraeus.
Many Aegean islands are being asphyxiated by the large number of refugees arriving from the Turkish coast each day. However, Piraeus port and certain areas around Athens are also facing the same issue. On Friday Athens Urban Transport Organization (OASA), transferred hundreds of refugees from Victoria Square to the temporary accommodation centers in Eleonas Galatsi and Ellinikon.
Meanwhile, the Greek Deputy Minister of Immigration Policy, Giannis Mouzalas, informed SYRIZA members about the refugee crisis, in the presence of prime minister, Alexis Tsipras, his predecessor Tasia Christodoulopoulou and MEP Dimitris Papadimoulis. The briefing began at 3pm and lasted until late at night.
It appears that the situation created on the Aegean islands due to the multi-day strike of the Panhellenic Seamen’s Federation has led the government to arrange for new routes that would take the refugees from the Aegean islands to Piraeus and Kavala. Until Friday morning, when the seamen’s strike ended, more than 15,000 people had gathered in Lesvos alone, 8,000 of whom have been registered and were waiting to depart for the mainland.
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