Nov 14, 2015, 11:38 AM

Austria to build fence on border with Slovenia

Austria to build fence on border with Slovenia

VIENNA, Nov. 14 (MNA) – The Austrian Government announced Friday building a-four kilometer fence on the border with Slovenia in order to control the growing migration flow.

According to the General Director of Public Security, Konrad Kogle, the structure will be made of wire netting, and might be reinforced with coils of barbed wire in emergency situations.

In late August, Austria announced the increase in surveillance in border areas, following the discovery of 71 dead migrants in an abandoned truck in the eastern German state of Burgenland, near the border with Hungary.

On Thursday, the authorities arrested 17 individuals accused of human trafficking, who are believed to have moved about 1,800 undocumented immigrants from Serbia to Austria in seven months.

Moreover, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) warned about the death of 3,460 migrants in the Mediterranean Sea so far this year, and the severity of the situation in the Greek islands, especially, in Lesbos.

According to the agency, about 3,300 undocumented immigrants arrive daily in Lesbos, where the reception vacancies are minimal.

Currently, there are about 16,000 refugees in the island, and only 2,800 vacancies in reception centers, forcing women, children and infants to sleep in the open, the UNHCR warned.

For his part, the first Vice-President of the European Commission, Frans Timmermans, criticized the position of countries like Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Poland and Romania, who refuse to participate in a mechanism for redistribution of migrants.

He also expressed concern about the state of the bloc and its future if the 28 fail to reach an agreement on how to tackle the current situation.

The refugee crisis is the last element of a perfect storm for the European cooperation, a project that many consider indestructible, but is not, he said.

 

sgl/l2p/lma/gas

PL-24/MNA

 

News ID 111929

Tags

Your Comment

You are replying to: .
  • captcha