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3w ago

Greece Suspends Asylum Applications for Sea Arrivals From North Africa

Detaining new arrivals, Athens is rerouting more than 500 migrants to mainland facilities to relieve Crete’s exhausted reception sites.

Migrants talk with the authorities, after Greece rescued hundreds of migrants off the islands of Gavdos and Crete in separate incidents, according to the Greek Coast Guard, in the port of Agia Galini, Greece, July 6, 2025. REUTERS/Stefanos Rapanis/File Photo
Medics transfer a migrant to an ambulance, after Greece rescued hundreds of migrants off the islands of Gavdos and Crete in separate incidents, according to the Greek Coast Guard, in the port of Agia Galini, Greece, July 6, 2025. REUTERS/Stefanos Rapanis/File Photo
Greece's Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis addresses a ministerial cabinet meeting in Athens, Greece, Monday, June 30, 2025.(AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
A Greek coast guard gives water to migrants from Africa as they take a shelter in Agia port, Chania, Crete island, Greece, Monday, July 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Giannis Angelakis)

Overview

  • Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis told parliament that Greece will pause processing asylum claims for three months for migrants arriving by sea from Libya and other North African states.
  • Illegal entrants will be arrested and detained under emergency legislation, with plans to construct a dedicated detention site on Crete and potentially reopen mainland camps used during the 2015 crisis.
  • Overnight operations intercepted a fishing trawler with about 520 migrants south of Crete and rerouted them to Lavrio near Athens for detention after island facilities reached capacity.
  • Athens is pursuing direct coordination with Libyan coast guards to turn back migrant boats before departure following the expulsion of an EU migration delegation from eastern Libya.
  • The measures respond to a record surge this year that has pushed arrivals on Crete above 10,000—including over 2,000 in the past weekend—overwhelming local services.