Greek authorities have detained more than 1,200 migrants on the islands of Crete and Gavdos between Saturday and Monday, following a sharp increase in arrivals from Libya. The influx marks one of the largest migrant surges to southern Greece in recent months and has overwhelmed local resources, prompting urgent calls for additional support from Athens. Regional officials reported that multiple overcrowded and unseaworthy vessels were intercepted along Crete’s southern coast. Most of the migrants, believed to be from conflict-affected regions in Africa and the Middle East, undertook the treacherous 350-kilometer (220-mile) journey from Libya, a route that has become increasingly trafficked due to tighter controls in the Central Mediterranean. The islet of Gavdos, Greece’s southernmost territory with fewer than 100 residents, has been particularly affected. Its limited infrastructure has been stretched beyond capacity, with migrants temporarily held in makeshift shelters and abandoned boats still lining the beaches. Local officials warned that the island lacks basic facilities to process and support such large numbers.
Many of the boats used were hastily built or repurposed vessels, often barely seaworthy and at high risk of capsizing. Greek Coast Guard units, supported by Frontex, the EU border agency, have been conducting intensified patrols and rescue operations in the area. This surge has reignited debate over the European Union’s policy of funding and equipping Libya’s coast guard to intercept boats before they reach Europe. Human rights organizations and NGOs continue to criticize this approach, citing credible reports of abuse, torture, and arbitrary detention of intercepted migrants in Libyan facilities.
Under international maritime law, those rescued at sea must be disembarked at a safe port, and the United Nations does not recognize Libya as one. Humanitarian groups argue that EU policies effectively trap migrants in unsafe conditions and push them to take increasingly perilous routes. Greek officials are urging the European Commission to revise asylum and border management frameworks to distribute the burden more fairly among member states. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Migration and Asylum has confirmed it is working to relocate the detainees from Gavdos and Crete to larger reception centers on the mainland.
