On Tuesday, EU’s foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini is meeting with the United Nations high commissioner for refugees to discuss the crisis.
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A group of 30-40 mostly Syrian or Afghan nationals arrived at the Serbian town of Sid near the Croatian border early in the morning on Wednesday.
Social affairs minister Aleksandar Vulin toured the Hungary-Serbia border and said: “The Hungarians never told us that they will close the border“.
Authorities erected a razor-wire fence overnight at a railway track used by tens of thousands of refugees to cross into Hungary from neighbouring Serbia, a non-EU nation.
“More than 500,000 migrants were detected at EU borders in the first eight months of this year after a fifth consecutive monthly record was registered in August when 156,000 crossed the EU borders”, the statement said, noting, “there were 280,000 detections” at EU borders last year.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, one of Europe’s most vociferous opponents of immigration, has vowed to stop the flow.
At Merkel’s side, Austrian Chancellor Werner Faymann said that “no one who is in search of protection should lose their lives”, and warned of a “humanitarian crisis” if there is not quick and decisive action. Any refugees who are not considered asylum seekers would face deportation.
Germany’s vice chancellor says Europe has again made a fool of itself in the migration crisis and is calling for a summit soon of the 28-nation bloc’s leaders.
Bashir, a 17-year-old schoolboy from Bazari in Afghanistan wanting to make it to Sweden or Norway, said he arrived at the border an hour after it closed at midnight and was unable to cross.
Banging on the metal barrier, they shouted “open border, open border!” a Reuters reporter said.
Faced with a swell in migrant numbers, Germany took the drastic measure of reinstating border controls on Sunday to slow the influx.
The emergency declaration comes a day after Hungary shut down a rail crossing between Hungary and Serbia that had become a popular entry point to the country from Serbia. “These are often countries that receive a lot of structural funds from the European Union”, German Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere said, referring indirectly to eastern European countries.
The European Union will hold an extra meeting of justice and interior ministers next week to seek progress on how relocate some 120,000 refugees among its members.
“There are at least a few hundred refugees begging authorities at that crossing point to let them cross over into Hungary”, Jamjoom said.
“The message we want to send is, “don’t come, this route will not take you to your destination”, Bakondi said.
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“If someone claims to be a refugee, he will be asked if he filed an asylum request in Serbia”.
