Hungary border closure redirects migrants through Europe

The closure of Hungary’s border with Croatia early Saturday caused redirection of thousands of people – including women and small children soaked in cold rain – further west toward Croatia’s border with Slovenia.

A group of migrants walk on the road near a border line between Serbia and Croatia, near the village of Berkasovo, Serbia, Monday, October 19, 2015.

“Our message for the governments is to take into consideration our suffering”, said Farouk Al-Hatib from Syria as he waited to cross into Croatia from Serbia.

UNHCR representatives rejected the possibility of only about 150 of the most vulnerable among the refugees being allowed to cross the border, as that would have separated families. Greek waters near Turkey are a major access point to Europe for migrants arriving from the Middle East. More were expected later in the day, with a few 1,800 on board one train in Croatia that was due to stop at the Slovenian border.

A government spokesman said Budapest had taken the step because “migrants appeared” on the Slovenian side of the border.

Slovenia fears that, if Croatia continues taking more refugees than it is able to send forward, there could be a “spill-over” of refugees.

The limitation on numbers has led to a build-up of migrants and refugees on Croatia’s border with Serbia.

The figure of 41 represents a new daily record low in 2015 for Hungary, which has witnessed up to 10,000 people stream across its borders daily since the summer.

Buses and trains packed with migrants arrived in the Slovenian border town of Petisovci on Saturday from Croatia after Hungary closed its borders.

Hungary’s right-wing government says the mainly Muslim migrants pose a threat to Europe’s prosperity, security and “Christian values”, and has sealed its borders with Serbia and Croatia with a steel fence and stringent new laws that rights groups say deny refugees their right to seek protection.

The United Nations refugee agency says that about 4-thousand have arrived in Slovenia and most aim to travel on to western Europe.

“The last person to go was a young boy without a leg, and we helped him cross in a wheelchair”, Sunjic said.

Desperate refugees were forced to spend the night in freezing temperatures near rail tracks after police stopped them from walking across the border dividing the two European Union states.

Slovenian interior ministry Secretary, Bostjan Sefic said that Slovenia will receive new refugees “only when the ones present are already registered”.

Mr. Sefic said the country is capable of handling a few 2,500 migrants a day but has received a request from neighboring Croatia to allow the entry of 5,000 migrants daily.

“There will be challenges if the process becomes slow or we have a backlog of people”.

According to the latest official information from Croatian Interior Ministry, from midnight to 9 pm on Sunday, 4,218 migrants entered Croatia.