Meanwhile, refugees continued to pour into southern Germany from Austria in spite of a border control introduced last week.
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Croatian officials said their country has been overwhelmed by the arrival of more than 27,000 people in less than a week, after the human tide diverted in their direction when Hungary sealed its border with Serbia.
Migrants pack a train station in Croatia.
In Hungary, prime minister Viktor Orban has warned that an influx of Muslim refugees poses a threat to Europe’s “Christian identity”. “Because we have an aging population, ” Kristina Persson, minister for Nordic co-operation, said, “we have to replace those who leave the labour market”.
And the Czech government has barely cracked its door open, allowing in just 1,500 migrants, despite a demographic drag on its own economy.
When they meet in Brussels on Wednesday, European leaders will discuss longer-term strategies for dealing with the migration crisis, such as increasing cooperation for the Middle East to reduce the incentive for refugees to try to reach Europe and boosting aid to the World Food Programme and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.
In the few years after the end of the war, more than 100,000 Jews who tried to enter British-controlled Palestine were stuck in “displaced persons” camps. So far, Europe’s leaders for the most part have succeeded only in accusing each other of acting selfishly or inhumanely and trading blame over who’s responsible for the crisis.
Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere expressed regret at Schmidt’s decision, saying he had “done an excellent job” and praising his “extraordinary commitment” in the post he had held since 2010.
European Union nations have been asked to show solidarity with the most affected member states by taking in their share of asylum seekers. Nations such as Greece have simply hustled new arrivals on to new countries, while Berlin has pledged to accept asylum seekers regardless of their first port of call.
The Interior Ministry announced in a statement on Thursday that it had accepted the resignation of Manfred Schmidt, head of the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF).
“What we see here has nothing to do with seeking refuge and safety”, Austrian Interior Minister Johanna Mikl-Leitner told reporters in Vienna on Monday. “It’s nothing but opportunism”.
A migration expert at the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development in Paris, Jean-Christophe Dumont, said that it’s costlier up front to integrate refugees than other categories of immigrants, because they often need language and vocational training as well as treatment for physical injuries or psychological trauma.
The Greek coast guard said on September 20 that it had rescued 20 people by helicopter, but survivors said another 26 people had been about the boat.
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The government tightened some measures, including reducing cash benefits for refugees and offering them more in-kind assistance, such as food and clothing.
