A significant decline in migrant arrivals to Greece has been recorded over the past twelve months, according to data from the Ministry of Migration and Asylum released on Tuesday. In addition, over the same period, returns also increased, while the successful asylum status recognition rate fell. The data offers a clear picture of migration flows management in the country.
However, unrest at a closed migrants facility in northern Greece on Saturday resulted in the escape of fifteen detainees, the arrest of twenty-five, and the injury of five people, alarming residents in the wider area of Sintiki, near the city of Serres.
Greece declining migration arrivals trend continues into 2026
Between August 1, 2024 and August 1, 2025, arrivals totaled 61,112, while in the following twelve-month period, from August 1, 2025 to July 31, 2026, they fell to 41,998. The difference amounts to almost twenty thousand fewer arrivals, representing a decline of around 35 percent, according to ministry data. The trend has continued into the first seven months of 2026, with migration flows down by 25 percent compared with the corresponding seven-month period in 2025.
At the same time, returns increased. During the first seven months of 2026, the total number of returns rose by 20 percent compared with the same period a year earlier, while forced returns increased even more by 35 percent. According to ministry data, a significant decline was also recorded in the asylum recognition rate. During the first seven months of 2026, the rate stood at 37 percent.
Detainees escape from closed migrants facility in northern Greece
An attempted escape on Saturday from the closed accommodation facility for asylum seekers in Kleidi, in the municipality of Sintiki, Serres, northern Greece, has triggered reactions. A total of twenty-five people were arrested over incidents at the guarded temporary facility for asylum applicants on Saturday and remanded in custody after appearing before a prosecutor pending trial on Wednesday. Of those, 23 were Bangladeshi and Egyptian nationals, prosecuted for attempted escape, escape, mutiny by detainees, and damage to property belonging to others.
According to information provided by the Hellenic Police, the incidents began shortly after 9pm, when a group of detainees at the facility attacked police forces with stones and other objects while also causing damage to the facilities and the perimeter fence. Some cut through the wire mesh and managed to escape from the facility. The number of detainees who managed to escape and remained at large stands at fifteen, and searches to locate them were under way.
A total of five foreign nationals were injured during the unrest. Three received medical treatment at Serres Hospital and returned to the facility while two remained in hospital for treatment. Strong police forces were mobilized to deal with the situation.
Locals call for shutdown of closed migrants facility
Meanwhile, in an extraordinary meeting of the Municipality of Sintiki on Monday, the great majority of the city council approved a decision calling for the shutting down of the Klidi facility, expressing the local community’s desire and its notable concern over the current situation in the area, AMNA reports. The municipal council, taking into account developments and long-standing concerns of residents, called on the Greek state and the Migration and Asylum Ministry to take all necessary actions to shut down the Klidi facility.
Meanwhile, on Tuesday, 85 migrants were rescued on Tuesday east-southeast of Kali Limenes, southern Crete, under the coordination of the Joint Rescue Coordination Center. According to the Hellenic Coast Guard, the migrants were aboard two dinghies that were spotted by a Frontex unmanned aerial vehicle. A Coast Guard patrol vessel rushed to the area and rescued those on board. The approximately 85 rescued migrants are being safely transported to the port of Kali Limenes, where the required registration and identification procedures will take place.
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