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571. Mass deportations underway in Cyprus

The Republic of Cyprus has begun expelling foreign nationals who have been turned down for asylum, citing concerns over security threats and changing demographics due to a migration crisis...

572. Asylum seekers continue to protest confinement at Pournara camp

Residents of the Pournara refugee camp in Kokkinotrimithia continued to protest on Wednesday morning against the enduring lockdown on the camp....

573. Demonstration outside refugee camp sparks Government reaction

A demonstration staged outside the Pournara camp in Kokkinotrimithia on Sunday calling for an end to the arbitrary detention of hundreds of refugees and asylum seekers stirred reaction from the Government on Tuesday, with an Interior Ministry announcement claiming it won’t be allowing any further ghettoization of the island....

574. Cyprus readies to deport suspected terrorists

The Republic of Cyprus says it is getting ready to deport 17 undocumented migrants suspected of having ties to foreign terrorists, but proceedings could be delayed due to ongoing pandemic and other legal issues...

575. All asylum seekers at Pournara locked in

Health ministry officials say going in and out of the migrant facility in rural Nicosia is temporarily forbidden due to a scabies infestation, with the government defending migration policies amid criticism over living conditions and restriction of freedom of movement at the camp...

576. Divided Cyprus slammed over refugee pushback

Two dozen groups around the world have condemned authorities on both sides of divided Cyprus after 175 Syrian refugees were denied the right to seek asylum...

577. Migrant camp declared ‘local infected area’

Human rights advocates in the Republic of Cyprus are crying foul over the government's handling of asylum seekers at Pournara camp, after the health ministry declared the migrant centre a “local infected area” citing public health laws due to an infestation...

578. Migrant camp near boiling point

Police said three people were arrested at Pournara migrant centre during a protest on Wednesday, one day after a hunger strike, as camp residents demand better living conditions and the right to leave camp...

579. As coronavirus lockdown eases, Cypriots still in limbo

Deniz Birinci had just hours to stuff her and her baby daughter’s belongings into suitcases and bin bags on March 16 before the two sides on the divided island of Cyprus imposed lockdowns to halt the spread of the new coronavirus....

580. Six new cases announced as Cyprus awaits President's address

581. Conditions at migrant camps improving, but arbitrary detention issues remain

The UNHCR office in Cyprus said on Monday that it was pleased with the steps being taken to improve the living conditions of asylum seekers on the island, but expressed hope that additional measures will follow to tackle the multifaceted issues that emerged amid the coronavirus outbreak....

582. Report draws attention to migrant centres

A report published this week by Ombudswoman Maria Stylianou-Lottides takes stock of current conditions in migrant facilities in the Republic of Cyprus, pointing out medical challenges, problems associated with weather, and asylum issues...

583. Turkish secret services target Greek refugee camps

Turkey has been conducting secret missions in refugee camps and other places in Greece to gather information about critics of the Turkish government and supporters of self-exiled cleric Fethullah Gulen, who have taken refuge in Greece, according to a publication by the Nordic Monitor website. ...

584. Coronavirus hits third migrant facility as Greece plans to ease lockdown

The death of a 101-year-old woman at Sotiria Hospital in Athens took Greece’s coronavirus toll to 120 on Tuesday afternoon....

585. Future for rescued refugees in north unknown

The fate of 175 Syrian refugees, trapped in the north of the island amid the coronavirus pandemic, remains unknown while a human rights group is calling on Greek Cypriot authorities to take them in...

586. Greece to move over 2,300 refugees to mainland after Easter

Greek authorities will begin the gradual transfer of 2,380 asylum seekers and their families from island camps to accommodation facilities on the mainland after Orthodox Easter (April 19), the country’s Migration Ministry said Thursday. ...

587. We will defeat our shared pandemic enemy and rise stronger in its wake

The story of U.S. leadership in the global battle against Covid-19 is a story of days, months, and decades. Every day, new U.S. technical and material assistance arrives in hospitals and labs around the world. These efforts, in turn, build on a decades-long foundation of American expertise, generosity, and planning that is unmatched in history....

588. UNHCR steps in to ensure refugees in Cyprus receive proper protection

The UNHCR office in Cyprus has stressed that refugees must be included in the government’s planning and response to the Covid-19 pandemic, offering hands-on solutions to the myriad problems in the government’s handling of refugee and asylum procedures that have only been exacerbated by the current crisis....

589. NGOs raise alarm over inhumane conditions at overcrowded migrant camp

Two migrant and refugee support NGOs, Cyprus Refugee Council and Caritas Cyprus, have raised the alarm over the inhumane conditions that have developed in the Kokkinitrimithia camp, particularly since the coronavirus pandemic broke out on the island....

590. Greece coronavirus fatalities reach 67

Greek Health Ministry spokesman Sotiris Tsiodras on Friday announced 99 new coronavirus cases, raising the total in the country to 1,613....

591. Greece's response to coronavirus working, Mitsotakis tells CNN

In an interview with CNN on Wednesday night, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said that the measures his government has taken to curb the spread of the coronavirus appear to be working and thanked the Greek people for their cooperation, conceding however that “the hard work is still ahead of us.”...

592. Blocked refugees rescued in the north

Coast guard officials in the Republic of Cyprus blocked a boat carrying over a hundred undocumented migrants from entering territorial waters, while reports in the north said Turkish Cypriot authorities rescued 175 Syrians including women and children...

593. Migrant camps on Greek islands put on lockdown

No visitors, including members of organizations and agencies, will be allowed into the migrant reception and processing centers on the Greek islands for the next two weeks at least, the Migration Ministry said yesterday, announcing a series of measures to prevent a coronavirus outbreak in any of the facilities....

594. Cooker seen behind deadly blaze at Moria camp

Firefighters on the eastern Aegean island of Lesvos are investigating the cause of a blaze that broke out on Monday afternoon at the Moria refugee and migrant camp, killing a child before it was brought under control. Authorities said the child was a girl aged between 6 and 7...

595. Child dies in fire in Greek migrant camp

A young child died in a fire in an overcrowded migrant camp on the Greek island of Lesbos on Monday, fire brigade officials said....

596. Large fire breaks out at Moria migrant camp on Lesvos

A large fire has broken out at the Moria refugee and migrant camp on the eastern Aegean island of Lesvos, according to local media reports on Monday. ...

597. EU-backed program foresees voluntary repatriation for 5,000 migrants

Migration Policy Minister Notis Mitarakis and European Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson on Thursday jointly announced the establishment of a European Union-backed program for the repatriation of 5,000 migrants from Greece. ...

598. Turkish special forces fire over Greek military vehicle at border, Kathimerini learns

There is evidence of a sharp increase in aggressive behavior by Turkish security forces in both the Aegean and at the Evros land border, Kathimerini has learned. ...

599. Erdogan likens Greek authorities to Nazis

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday said there is “no difference” between Nazis and the Greek authorities trying to hold the country’s border against the influx of thousands of migrants and refugees spurred to push into the European Union by Ankara....

600. Berlin to take up to 100 children from Greek refugee camps

Berlin will take in 80 to 100 children from Greek refugee camps, an official in the German capital said on Tuesday, as concern mounts about migrants amassing on the Turkish-Greek border....