[HIGHLIGHTS] Immigration: Greece is getting impatient and pleads for the rapid implementation of the European pact “on migration and asylum”

The coast guard on the island of Chios received a distress signal at 4 a.m. A drifting boat ran into the rocks of Parpanda Kardamyla beach, in the northwest of the island.

On board were twenty-seven people, most of whom were from Afghanistan. That day, the coast guard recovered the lifeless bodies of three girls aged 5, 7 and 10; 19 people were rescued, and the large-scale search continued until late in the evening. “It’s one more tragedy and one drama too many,” says Christina Psarra, director of MSF in Greece. Since the start of 2024, more than 11,300 arrivals have been recorded on the Greek islands alone, according to the High Commission for Refugees. The number is expected to rise to 11,000 by the end of the year, the UNHCR says. The Greek islands are a popular destination for refugees, especially from Central and South America and the Middle East.