Greek Coastguard Picks Up 170 Illegal Immigrants In East Aegean
The Earth Times
June 17, 2008
Athens – The Greek coastguard said Tuesday it has picked up 170 illegal immigrants off the east Aegean islands of Agathonisi, Samos and Pharmakonisi in the past three days. There were 20 minors among the would-be immigrants, and the majority came from Afghanistan and Iraq, the coastguard said.
State radio said migrant camps were overcrowded in the region.
Greece has to deal with large numbers of illegal immigrants, usually arriving from Turkey, as it is located on the outer fringes of the European Union.
Official figures place the number of illegal immigrants picked up in the whole of Greece in the last 12 months at 112,000.
One in 10 of Greece's population is now foreign.
