NEWS

Refugees face exploitation by opportunists

Refugees face exploitation by opportunists

A bus driver was arrested Tuesday for misleading 25 Syrian refugees, promising to drive them to the border in northern Greece which, he assured them, was open.

He was nabbed in Palaio Faliro, southern Athens, as the refugees boarded his bus. Police said he didn’t have any bus tickets on board or a passenger list. It was not clear how much he planned to charge the refugees.

Police are also looking for three accomplices, who allegedly transferred the refugees from the port of Piraeus in a minibus.

It was the latest in a string of incidents involving the exploitation of refugees, prompting Piraeus port authorities to tighten security measures – posting specially equipped units at passenger terminals where volunteer groups operate and conducting checks on incoming vehicles.

Meanwhile on Sunday the Netherlands sent medical supplies and equipment in reponse to the Greek government’s request for European Union member-states to provide humanitarian aid for the thousands of migrants stranded in the country.

The aid included 300 folding beds, 1,000 pillows, 4,600 sleeping bags, 1,000 thermal blankets and 2,350 personal hygiene items. Greece has already taken delivery of 92 power generators and 12 minivans from the Netherlands, with six more minivans expected to arrive today.

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