Thousands of exhausted refugees have streamed into
Austria after being bussed to the border by the Hungarian government,
which gave up trying to stop them under pressure from the sheer numbers
reaching its frontiers.
About 4,000 refugees have arrived in Austria so far, the country's
interior ministry said, and the number is expected to reach 10,000
throughout Saturday.
Rain-soaked refugees, many of them from Syria, were whisked by train
and shuttle bus to Vienna, where many said they were resolved to
continue on to Germany.
German police later said the first 450 of up to 10,000 refugees
expected on Saturday had arrived on a special train in Munich from
Austria.
After days of confrontation and chaos, Hungary's right-wing
government deployed dozens of buses to take refugees from Budapest and
pick up over 1,000 who had set off doggedly by foot on Friday down the
main highway to Vienna.
Austria said it had agreed with Germany that it would allow the
refugees access, waiving the rules of an asylum system brought to
breaking point by Europe's worst refugee crisis in decades.
'Refugees welcome'
Wrapped in blankets and sleeping bags against the rain, long lines of
weary refugees, many carrying small, sleeping children, climbed off
buses on the Hungarian side of the border and walked into Austria,
receiving fruit and water from aid workers. Waiting Austrians held signs
that read, "Refugees welcome".
|
Tension rises on Greek island overwhelmed by refugees
|
"Because of today's emergency situation on the Hungarian border, Austria
and Germany agree in this case to a continuation of the refugees'
journey into their countries," Austrian Chancellor Werner Faymann said
on his Facebook page.
For days, Hungary has cancelled all trains going west to Austria and
Germany, saying it is obliged under EU rules to register all asylum
seekers, who should remain there until their requests are processed.
Many refugees refused, determined to get to the richer countries of northern and Western Europe, mainly Germany.
"The government has not commented on why they changed their mind over
the issue yet," Al Jazeera’s Mohammed Jamjoom, reporting from the
highway leading to the Hungarian-Austrian border, said on Budapest’s
decision to let refugees go to Austria.
Traffic built up on the highway as cars crossing the border were
being searched as a result of measures taken after dozens of refugees
were found dead on a truck last week.
Meanwhile, European foreign ministers and officials gathered in
Luxembourg on Saturday to discuss the massive influx of migrants and
refugees in countries across Europe.
|
The Hungarian government deployed buses to ferry refugees to the Austrian border [AP] |
Hungary has emerged as the main entry point for refugees reaching the EU by land across the Balkan Peninsula.
In Pictures: A night at the train station
More than 140,000 people have been recorded entering Hungary so far
this year through the EU's external border with Serbia, where Hungary's
government is building an 3.5 metres high wall. Countless others may
have entered without registering.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, one of Europe's most outspoken
critics of mass immigration, took to the airwaves to issue sharp
warnings that Europeans could become a minority on their own continent.
Source: Al Jazeera And Agencies
Nenhum comentário:
Postar um comentário