Women
UNICEF, on Thursday says the number of unaccompanied refugees/ migrants children, staying in dangerous and overcrowded reception centres on the Greek islands and detention facilities across Greece, exceeds 1,100.
According to UNICEF, the number of separated children in the centres was the largest since the beginning of 2016.
Afshan Khan, UNICEF Regional Director for Europe and Central Asia, said recently, a child lost his life and two more were injured in a violent incident in the Reception and Identification Centre in Moria.
“This latest tragedy is a stark reminder that the situation, in the Reception Centres in Greece, is at a breaking point.
She promised that UNICEF would continue to appeal to Greek authorities to transfer children to adequate accommodation on the mainland.
She added that the Greek government could not do that alone.
Khan stressed the need for the European governments to increase pledges to relocate unaccompanied and separated refugee and migrant children and fast-track family reunifications for those whose relatives reside in Europe.
However, UNICEF said it had released a short film documenting the dreams and despair of boys staying in “Section B’’.
The section is an area meant to provide specialised protection for unaccompanied children in the Reception and Identification Centre in Moria on the Greek Island of Lesvos.
The Reception Centre in Moria is meant to accommodate 3,000 people, but currently, it has more than 8,700, including 3,000 children.
Section B, including the adjacent area, has room for 160 unaccompanied children, but now accommodating more than 520.
According to UNICEF, presently there were more than 32,000 refugee and migrant children in Greece, including more than 4,000 unaccompanied and separated.
It said over the last three years, UNICEF had supported more than 60,000 refugee and migrant children, and their families in Greece. (Xinhua/NAN)
– Aug. 29, 2019 @ 17:25 GMT |
Tags: 1 100 unaccompanied refugees migrant children in Greece need shelter – UNICEF
