Migrant dies from electrocution during clashes at Greek-Macedonian border

According to police, the Moroccan accidentally touched the electric cables after he jumped off a train wagon at a point where immobilized trains stood for days. But Greece’s neighbors could reintroduce border controls for Greek people if the country were deemed to be “seriously neglecting its obligations”.

The refugee crisis has hit Europe hard during the last several months and especially Greece, which is one of the main gateways through Turkey.

Mouzalas said he hopes to have cleared up the impasse at the Macedonian border in “four or five days”.

French daily Le Monde on Wednesday echoed that Greece risks exiting the Schengen zone, reporting that EU Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker had warned Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras of the possibility.

“They don’t dare to ask us “drown them”, but if you do push-back on a plastic boat in the middle of the sea with 50 or 70 refugees aboard, you’re asking me to drown them”, the minister said.

Unable to cope with the flow of people, countries further north have erected razor-wire fences and reintroduced border controls, casting doubts about the viability of the 26-nation Schengen system.

Greek police say there are around 2,500 refugees in the Idomeni border area who have been waiting in the nearby camp, and roughly 3,000 migrants.

Asselborn said he had seen progress in managing reception for migrants on the islands off the Turkish coast and expected a final accord on cooperation with Frontex on the northern border, where migrants who have crossed Greece try to leave for Germany but now face new obstacles put in place by non-EU Macedonia. Since migrants have rarely used airlines or worldwide ferries, the main impact of other Schengen states imposing passport checks on arrivals from Greece would be on Greeks and tourists who are vital to the Greek economy.

Some had told Greek officials they were willing to return to their home countries, but the Pakistani government was not responding to requests to readmit them and the International Organisation for Migration had no money to fly them home.

“The situation in Idomeni must stop”, he said.

Greece’s financially-strapped government says it has spent about 1 billion euros ($1.12 billion) addressing the migrant crisis and only received 30 million euros in European Union aid.

However, some also said that Greece appeared to be moving now to implement European Union measures to control migrants and so a common front against Athens was unlikely as early as this week.

He added that the suit challenges “so-called mandatory quotas” on refugee re-location, which EU interior ministers adopted in September amid fierce opposition from central and eastern European member states.

Macedonian authorities are allowing only people from the war-wracked countries of Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq to cross from Greece on their way to other European Union countries.

 Speaking to the FT, one Greek official denied foot-dragging but another acknowledged Greece had been uncooperative, saying this stemmed, in part, from a legal requirement that only Greeks can patrol its borders.