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Record 10,046 migrants pour into Hungary
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THOUSANDS of migrants streamed through the Balkans yesterday as German Chancellor Angela Merkel warned after an emergency summit that Europe still had to get to grips with its biggest post-war refugee crisis.
French officials meanwhile said a young African was killed by a Channel Tunnel train while trying to get to Britain, the latest of thousands of deaths this year of people desperate to start a new life in Europe.
Hungarian police announced 10,046 migrants, a new daily record, had arrived on Wednesday from Croatia, while Austrian authorities said yesterday that 8,100 had entered from Hungary in the previous 36 hours.
But Budapest is planning to seal its border with Croatia as early as this weekend or the beginning of next week, according to government sources quoted by Hungarian news websites.
Migrants, many from war-torn Syria, are pouring through the Balkans on a zig-zag trek to northern Europe, particularly Germany, which they see as a beacon of stability and prosperity.
The previous record in Hungary was set on September 14, when 9,380 migrants crossed just before the country effectively sealed its border with Serbia with razor wire.
That closure — and subsequent clashes with riot police on the border — led thousands of migrants to enter Croatia, quickly overwhelming authorities who then started bussing them to the Hungarian frontier.
On Tuesday almost 9,000 migrants entered Croatia, also a new high. Over the last week, more than 44,000 refugees have entered the country from non-EU Serbia. That influx has fuelled tensions between the two countries.
In tit-for-tat moves overnight, Croatia and Serbia further restricted traffic at the last major crossing point still open between them, Tanjug news agency reported in Belgrade.
“I am deeply convinced that what Europe needs is not just selective relocation of this kind, but much more a durable process for fairly distributing refugees among member states,” Merkel told parliament. “A first step has been taken, but we are still far from where we should be.”
EU leaders agreed to boost aid for Syria’s neighbors, home to millions of refugees fleeing years of civil war and the ravages of Islamic State extremists, to stop them coming to Europe.
The leaders agreed to mobilize an additional one billion euros (US$1.12 billion) for the UN refugee agency and the World Food Program, as well as more help for Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan and Balkan countries. The run-up to the summit had seen major divisions open in the 28-nation bloc, especially between western and former communist eastern members.
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