Greece is set to open two new "transit camps" on the mainland to speed up transfers of migrants and refugees from its islands. The initiative is an attempt to reduce overcrowding in the camps on Lesbos, Chios and Samos.
Two new facilities are set to open soon in a bid to ease the pressure on the overcrowded refugee camps on the north eastern Aegean islands of Lesbos, Chios, Samos, Kos and Leros.
On the Greek island of Samos, thousands of migrants and refugees from Africa feel trapped. They are disappointed with the long asylum procedures, leaving them in limbo in overcrowded camps amid horrid living conditions.
Greece's government is scrambling to clear-out thousands of migrants from the island of Samos - home to the country's most crowded and abysmal refugee camp. Authorities have already failed to meet a deadline for its evacuation, stoking a showdown with local authorities that have threatened to sue the migration minister for failed action. Anthee Carassava reports from the refugee camp of Samos.
There are nearly 75,000 refugees and asylum-seekers currently in various reception centres across Greece. The Greek government said it plans to transfer up to 6,000 people from the Greek islands to the mainland to improve their living conditions, but many observers are skeptical.
Amnesty International has warned that refugee camps on Greek islands are dangerously overcrowded, putting female refugees "at increased risk of harrowing abuses."
Greece has announced that it will move 2,000 asylum seekers from the island of Lesbos to the mainland by the end of September. The move comes as Europe's senior migration official is visiting Greece and Cyprus, which is set to receive EU help to deal with a growing number of arrivals.
The Janzour detention center, some 20 km south-west of Tripoli's center, has struggled with a surge in arrivals following clashes in the Libyan capital.
The EU has awarded an extra €45.6 million to Greece and Spain to help improve conditions in refugee camps there. More than a billion has now been spent on emergency aid to help manage migration in Europe, making this the most costly humanitarian crisis in history.
Centers for unaccompanied migrant children in Andalusia are facing an emergency, after over 1,300 people landed on Spain's coast at the weekend.
On the second anniversary of the EU-Turkey agreement on refugees, Human Rights Watch (HRW) has called on the Greek government to finally put an end to its so called "containment" policy and stop the suffering of thousands of people still stranded at overcrowded migrant camps.
The Greek Migration Policy Ministry is reportedly considering extending the residence permits of migrants and refugees staying in Greece due to a huge backlog of applications that has built up in the wake of its IT system breaking down last month.