Turkey's gendarmerie briefly threw up barricades near the border city of Edirne, around 17km by road from the Greek border.
Bus services from Istanbul to Edirne were suspended as authorities tried to stem the flow of people, and hundreds of would-be migrants gathered nearby demanding land access to the EU, as fears over deadly sea-routes mounted.
"Save us from drowning" placard-waving crowds chanted near the main bus station in Istanbul.
The migrants used social media to organise ahead of today’s effort to reach Greece by land, hoping to draw attention to the dangers of crossing into Europe by sea.
Turkey is sheltering two million people - the largest refugee population in the world - but difficult conditions and a lack of work have seen a growing tide of migrants trying to smuggle themselves into EU-member Greece.
Many desperate people are continuing to attempt the crossing to Greek islands, some lying as little as 4km from the Turkish coast.
At least 22 people, including four children, drowned today when their boat capsized...
rte.ie
15/9/15
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About 250 Syrian migrants have attempted to walk to Pazarkule border gate in the northwestern province of Edirne in the hope of reaching Germany via Greece amid intervention by security forces...
ReplyDeleteSome 3,000 Syrian migrants connected through the Internet and came from various provinces across the country, arriving in Edirne with rented buses and private vehicles. Upon notice of their arrival, police and gendarmerie forces blocked their way to the city in compliance with a notice issued by the Interior Ministry.
However, about 250 migrants succeeded in reaching Edirne on foot and gathered at the city’s main bus terminal where they staged a sit-in protest. Security forces convinced a hundred migrants to return to Istanbul while the rest remained in the bus terminal....hurriyetdailynews.com