Latest news with #GreekCoastGuard
Libya Review
21-07-2025
- Politics
- Libya Review
Greece Intercepts & Detains 247 Migrants from Libya
The Greek Coast Guard has detained 247 migrants who entered Greece illegally from Libya, following a series of interceptions south of Gavdos and Crete over the past 24 hours. The migrants were transported aboard Offshore Vessel 080 to the port of Lavrio, where they were transferred to detention centres under Greece's newly tightened migration laws. A recent parliamentary amendment has suspended asylum applications for migrants arriving illegally from Libya. As a result, these individuals will not be hosted in Ministry of Migration reception facilities and will remain in detention until return procedures are completed. 'The government's message is clear: those entering illegally from Libya will face immediate detention and deportation,' a Ministry official stated. Upon their arrival at Lavrio, the migrants were escorted by police to PROKEKA (Pre-departure Detention Centres for Foreigners). Additional facilities have been allocated by the Ministry of Migration to accommodate the growing number of illegal arrivals. Rescue Operation off Gavdos In a separate incident, the Greek Coast Guard and EU border agency Frontex rescued 63 migrants from a boat south of Gavdos. The operation, coordinated by the Unified Search and Rescue Coordination Centre (E.K.S.E.D.), brought the group safely to the port of Karave on Gavdos, where they await transfer. This comes after 175 migrants, also from Libya, were intercepted in three separate incidents off Crete on Saturday, underscoring the increasing pressure of migration routes through Libya. Stricter Border Policies The new policy marks a tougher stance by Greece on illegal migration from Libya. Authorities emphasise that all future arrivals from the North African country will face detention and return procedures, signalling a shift toward stronger border enforcement. Tags: Asylum SeekersGreecelibyaMediterraneanmigration
Euronews
17-07-2025
- Politics
- Euronews
'Dirty fuel': Greenpeace protests fossil gas investment in Greece
The Greek Coast Guard stopped a three-hour protest by activists from the Greek office of Greenpeace at the FSRU Alexandroupolis floating liquefaction unit on Wednesday. The activists were anchored with banners reading "STOP fossil gas" and on the staircase of the terminal with banners that said "Fossil gas: not approved", aiming to send a strong message against what they say are the country's unnecessary and wasteful investments in fossil gas. Greenpeace said it didn't prevent the plant's operations and its only aim was to highlight the problem and the need for rapid decarbonisation of fossil fuels and a just transition to a zero-emission economy. Today's action comes with an urgent demand to the government: ban the construction of new fossil gas plants in Greece and phase out fossil gas by 2035. Only then do we have the chance of limiting global warming to tolerable levels and rescuing the country's vital natural resources from the climate crisis, according to the environmental organisation. "The peaceful action of our office activists sent the message that fossil gas, whether in liquid or gaseous form, is the same dirty fuel, and should have no place in our lives," says Costas Kaloudis, Climate and Energy Campaigner at Greenpeace's Greek office. "It destroys our climate, health, environment and economy. The government must immediately reconsider its stance on building new gas plants in the country." Why is Alexandroupolis FSRU a target for climate protestors? The Alexandroupolis FSRU is located in a marine protected area and is largely financed by public funds. Its presence and operation have serious implications for the present and future, as it causes greenhouse gas emissions, particularly methane, the most powerful greenhouse gas. It also disturbs the marine environment in the country's most important fishing ground, sucking up millions of tonnes of seawater and killing fish and other marine organisms. Along with other environmental organisations, Greenpeace has appealed to Greece's Council of State to cancel the plant's permits because of its serious environmental impacts and its contribution to the worsening climate crisis. The action is taking place as a partial reopening of the plant is expected in August, as well as a hearing of the environmental organisations' appeal in October. This peaceful action is also part of Greenpeace's Europe-wide Fossil Free Future campaign and the Stop Fossil Gas tour across Europe. The organisation's flagship ship, Arctic Sunrise, is touring European cities to raise awareness about Europe's energy system and the need for immediate decarbonisation. At the same time, it is promoting the abolition of fossil gas and a fair and gradual transition to renewable energy sources, which will allow everyone to meet their energy needs at decent prices, without harming society, the planet and the environment. The ship has visited Belgium, Italy and Croatia, and last weekend came to Greece, in Heraklion, Crete. Greenpeace has published a Europe-wide call for a ban on all new fossil gas - and fossil fuel - infrastructure projects in the EU, which has already gathered 83,000 signatures. What is Alexandroupolis FSRU? The floating storage and regasification unit - or FSRU - named Alexandroupolis, sailed from a Singapore anchorage in November 2023 and is now permanently moored 17 kilometres southwest of the port of Alexandroupolis. The FSRU is owned by Gastrade together with its shareholders Elmina Kopelouzou, Gaslog, DEPA Emporia, DESFA and Bulgartransgaz (Bulgaria's Gas Transmission Operator). In addition to the floating LNG receiving and temporary storage and gasification plant, the project includes a subsea and onshore pipeline system through which the gas is imported into Greece, transported to the National Gas Transmission System. From there it goes to final consumers in Greece, Bulgaria, Romania, Romania, North Macedonia, Serbia and further to Moldova and Ukraine in the east and Hungary and Slovakia in the west. "Greece is becoming an important gateway for energy in South East Europe for gas and electricity. We are a really reliable gateway for many forms of energy and we are going to contribute to the supply and carbonisation of Greece and neighbouring countries," DESFA CEO Maria Rita Galli told Euronews in September 2024. "In general, South-Eastern Europe has remained one of the regions most dependent on Russian gas. So a new infrastructure that allows more LNG from different countries of the world to come to this market increases the resilience of Europe in general and reduces the dependence on one source of gas."
The Star
10-07-2025
- Politics
- The Star
Greek lawmakers vote on North Africa asylum ban as rights groups cry foul
FILE PHOTO: Migrants talk with the authorities, after Greece rescued hundreds of migrants off the islands of Gavdos and Crete in separate incidents, according to the Greek Coast Guard, in the port of Agia Galini, Greece, July 6, 2025. REUTERS/Stefanos Rapanis/File Photo ATHENS (Reuters) -Greek lawmakers prepared to vote on legislation on Thursday that would temporarily halt the processing of asylum applications of people coming from North Africa, a move rights groups have called illegal. The vote comes amid a surge in migrant arrivals to the island of Crete and as talks with Libya's Benghazi-based government to help stem the flow were cancelled acrimoniously this week. Greece, one of the main gateways into the European Union for refugees and migrants from the Middle East, Asia and Africa, has taken an increasingly tough stance on migration since Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis' centre-right party came to power in 2019, building a fence at its northern land borders and boosting sea patrols in the east. Sea arrivals of migrants travelling from northeastern Libya to its southern islands of Crete and Gavdos, the closest European territory to North Africa, have surged this year. In response, Mitsotakis' government proposed legislation on Wednesday stipulating that migrants crossing illegally to Greece from North Africa by sea would not be able to file for an asylum for three months. A vote on the law, which would also allow authorities to quickly deport those migrants without any prior identification process, was expected later on Thursday or early on Friday. Human rights groups said the asylum ban would violate international and European law, and called on the Greek government to recall it. "Seeking refuge is a human right; preventing people from doing so is both illegal and inhumane," the International Rescue Committee (IRC) said in a statement. Mitsotakis - whose government controls155 lawmakers in the 300-seated parliament - said on Wednesday the ban was "an emergency response to an emergency situation". Greece has long been accused by aid groups of forcibly ejecting migrants at its sea and land borders, also known as"pushbacks," an illegal practice. A Greek naval court has charged 17 coastguard officers over one of the Mediterranean's worst shipwrecks two years ago, in which hundreds of people are believed to have drowned. (Reporting by Angeliki Koutantou; Editing by Alex Richardson)
Straits Times
10-07-2025
- Politics
- Straits Times
Greek lawmakers vote on North Africa asylum ban as rights groups cry foul
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox FILE PHOTO: Migrants talk with the authorities, after Greece rescued hundreds of migrants off the islands of Gavdos and Crete in separate incidents, according to the Greek Coast Guard, in the port of Agia Galini, Greece, July 6, 2025. REUTERS/Stefanos Rapanis/File Photo ATHENS - Greek lawmakers prepared to vote on legislation on Thursday that would temporarily halt the processing of asylum applications of people coming from North Africa, a move rights groups have called illegal. The vote comes amid a surge in migrant arrivals to the island of Crete and as talks with Libya's Benghazi-based government to help stem the flow were cancelled acrimoniously this week. Greece, one of the main gateways into the European Union for refugees and migrants from the Middle East, Asia and Africa, has taken an increasingly tough stance on migration since Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis' centre-right party came to power in 2019, building a fence at its northern land borders and boosting sea patrols in the east. Sea arrivals of migrants travelling from northeastern Libya to its southern islands of Crete and Gavdos, the closest European territory to North Africa, have surged this year. In response, Mitsotakis' government proposed legislation on Wednesday stipulating that migrants crossing illegally to Greece from North Africa by sea would not be able to file for an asylum for three months. A vote on the law, which would also allow authorities to quickly deport those migrants without any prior identification process, was expected later on Thursday or early on Friday. Human rights groups said the asylum ban would violate international and European law, and called on the Greek government to recall it. "Seeking refuge is a human right; preventing people from doing so is both illegal and inhumane," the International Rescue Committee (IRC) said in a statement. Mitsotakis - whose government controls 155 lawmakers in the 300-seated parliament - said on Wednesday the ban was "an emergency response to an emergency situation". Greece has long been accused by aid groups of forcibly ejecting migrants at its sea and land borders, also known as "pushbacks," an illegal practice. A Greek naval court has charged 17 coastguard officers over one of the Mediterranean's worst shipwrecks two years ago, in which hundreds of people are believed to have drowned. REUTERS
The Star
09-07-2025
- Politics
- The Star
Greece suspends asylum applications for migrants from North Africa
FILE PHOTO: Medics transfer a migrant to an ambulance, after Greece rescued hundreds of migrants off the islands of Gavdos and Crete in separate incidents, according to the Greek Coast Guard, in the port of Agia Galini, Greece, July 6, 2025. REUTERS/Stefanos Rapanis/File Photo ATHENS (Reuters) -Greece will stop processing asylum applications from people coming from North Africa for three months after a rise in arrivals on the island of Crete, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said on Wednesday. Sea arrivals from northeastern Libya of migrants trying to cross to Europe through Greece's southern islands of Crete and Gavdos have surged to more than 7,300 this year, according to estimates by the Greek government and aid agencies. That compares with around 5,000 in the whole of 2004. "With legislation that will be submitted to the parliament tomorrow, Greece will suspend the examination of asylum applications, initially for three months, for those arriving in Greece from North Africa by sea," Mitsotakis told parliament. The spike in arrivals has put pressure on the two islands, which lack organised migration reception camps and have struggled to find temporary housing facilities. The migrants mainly come from the Middle East and North Africa, including nationals from Sudan, Egypt and Bangladesh. Greece rescued about 520 migrants off Gavdos early on Wednesday and was taking them to the mainland, the Greek coastguard said. "Migrants who enter the country illegally will be arrested and detained," Mitsotakis added. The Mediterranean nation was on the frontline of the 2015-2016 migration crisis when more than a million people fleeing war and poverty in the Middle East and Africa crossed into Europe. (Reporting by Lefteris Papadimas; Editing by Andrew Heavens and Alison Williams)
