Greek police have arrested two men after 12 migrants were found squashed into a single car, as part of a crackdown on smuggling gangs operating in the country. Seven people have been detained in total.
Arrests Near Thessaloniki and Turkish Border
Officers said last week that one individual was taken into custody near Thessaloniki after three people were found in a car he was driving. Another six alleged members of smuggling gangs were also arrested near the Turkish border, who purportedly travelled with 28 people in their vehicles.
This is despite a fence having been erected along much of the threshold. Migrants from the Middle East, India and Africa pay gangs for passage to Europe. Fake identity documents are reputedly used to board flights or ferries deeper into the continent.
Migration Numbers and Recent Tragedy
A total of 34,000 undocumented migrants have entered Greece this year, and 7,000 of these crossed the land border, according to ekathimerini.com. Approximately 20,000 crossed the Mediterranean Sea in small boats from Libya.
The arrests come after 12 people, including a baby, died while trying to cross the Aegean Sea in stormy weather to Greece's eastern islands. There were reportedly two speedboats smuggling migrants from Turkey. Two men—of Turkish and Iranian nationality—were arrested and 22 survivors were rescued.
Minister Warns of Riskier Crossings
Greek migration minister, Thanos Plevris, said there are usually strong migratory flows in October and November due to there being good sailing conditions before December. He told ERT television: "[Smugglers] know that the good days for illegal passages are coming to an end, and I am very much afraid that they will attempt even more risky crossings, as they have done in the past."
"[The Libya route] is a problem," Plevris added. Large numbers of migrants are thought to be there waiting to be transported to Crete.
