In July, a record 107,500 migrants entered the European Union, with the highest concentration making their way to the Greek islands of Kos, Lesbos, Chios, and Samos.
The border agency Frontex said that since January, close to 340,000 migrants have arrived in Europe, a huge leap from the 280,000 migrants that came in 2014. A majority are from the Middle East, Time reports, leaving Syria, Iraq, and Afghanistan for Turkey, then crossing the Aegean Sea into Greece.
Kirk Day, field director of the International Rescue Committee's operation in Lesbos, said in a statement the "situation is already volatile, and we have started seeing increased tensions with the local authorities and between different refugee groups." Day said he wants locals to keep in mind why the migrants are risking their lives to come to Europe: "European donors and international institutions need to stop focusing on where these refugees are, and instead remember where they are from — and what they are fleeing."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
‘The problem isn’t solved by simply swapping out the faces on screen’Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
3 officers killed in Pennsylvania shootingSpeed Read Police did not share the identities of the officers or the slain suspect, nor the motive or the focus of the still-active investigation
-
Fed cuts interest rates a quarter pointSpeed Read ‘The cut suggests a broader shift toward concern about cracks forming in the job market’
-
House posts lewd Epstein note attributed to TrumpSpeed Read The estate of Jeffrey Epstein turned over the infamous 2003 birthday note from President Donald Trump
-
Supreme Court allows 'roving' race-tied ICE raidsSpeed Read The court paused a federal judge's order barring agents from detaining suspected undocumented immigrants in LA based on race
-
South Korea to fetch workers detained in Georgia raidSpeed Read More than 300 South Korean workers detained in an immigration raid at a Hyundai plant will be released
-
DC sues Trump to end Guard 'occupation'Speed Read D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb argues that the unsolicited military presence violates the law
-
RFK Jr. faces bipartisan heat in Senate hearingSpeed Read The health secretary defended his leadership amid CDC turmoil and deflected questions about the restricted availability of vaccines
-
White House defends boat strike as legal doubts mountSpeed Read Experts say there was no legal justification for killing 11 alleged drug-traffickers
-
Epstein accusers urge full file release, hint at own listspeed read A rally was organized by Reps. Ro Khanna and Thomas Massie, who are hoping to force a vote on their Epstein Files Transparency Act
-
Court hands Harvard a win in Trump funding battleSpeed Read The Trump administration was ordered to restore Harvard's $2 billion in research grants
