The latest developments as tens of thousands of people make their way to Europe and across the continent, seeking safety and a better life.
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According to official figures, of the 893,970 maritime arrivals recorded this year, 744,652 have taken place in Greece, the largest entry point into Europe for refugees and migrants hailing from Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan and Iran.
The request on Friday came after some European Union members suggested removing Greece from the bloc’s Schengen system of open borders for delaying an acceptance of help to handle the historic flow of refugees from Syria and other countries.
A group of the protesters – mainly Iranians, Pakistanis, Moroccans and Bangladeshis – blocked the border gate this Thursday (December 3).
Protests have swelled among desperate migrants stranded for days in squalid tent camps on the border near the Greek town of Idomeni in temperatures barely above freezing.
The man, believed to be from Morocco, died on Thursday after climbing onto a train wagon standing near the border and touching a high-tension overhead cable, a police spokesman told AFP news agency.
The passport move follows months of spontaneous closures by member states which have either been target or transit countries for hundreds of thousands of refugees.
As EU home affairs ministers gathered in Brussels on Friday, Greece was put under mounting pressure to cooperate with EU demans or face being barred from Schengen for up to two years.
Others threw stones. Greek police attempted to separate other people, especially those comprised of families with young children or elderly, into a nearby field for their protection. This picture was taken from the Greek side of the border.
Viktor Orban said Wednesday that a similar idea was rejected recently by European national leaders but that “the cat will be out of the bag” and the scheme will be announced in Berlin as soon as this week. “Obviously, (the solution) will not be a stroll in the woods… nobody likes to see the use of violence or anything else”.
“The chancellor and other members of the German government have repeatedly noted how important freedom of movement under Schengen is to us, and that the possibility of preserving this, which we want, depends very directly on how we as Europeans are able to protect and effectively control our exterior borders”, Seibert said.
Greece’s financially-strapped government says it has spent about 1 billion euros ($1.1 billion) addressing the migrant crisis and only received 30 million euros in European Union aid.
Asked by The World Weekly about the likelihood of suspension, EU Commission spokeswoman Tove Ernst said: “The Commission is not in the habit of commenting on rumours”.
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“The door is in Turkey”.
