More than 7,000 refugees arrive in Serbia in one night

More than 7,000 refugees arrive in Serbia in one night

"More than 7,000 people came to Serbia in the night between Saturday and Sunday after they managed to cross from Greece into Macedonia and set out from Gevgelija to Serbia by train," it is said, and added that hundreds more are on the border with a new wave newcomers expected.

Macedonia, which on Thursday introduced a state of emergency and sent the police and the army to its border to prevent the entry of refugees from Greece, in the end opened the border and let refugees in.

UNHCR stated that it had received guarantees from the Macedonian authorities that they would leave open their border for refugees.

However, the organization has asked Macedonia to "reinforce its presence and capacity" at the border in order to better organize reception of the people, and added that it was ready to help the Macedonian authorities if necessary.

UNHCR assists the Serbian authorities and non-governmental organizations in the reception of refugees in Presevo. This organization has distributed a certain amount of humanitarian aid, as requested by the Serbian authorities.

"UNHCR estimates that Greece and Macedonia need to make further efforts to resolve the problems which cannot disappear overnight and affects the whole of Europe. Again, we urge the EU to increase aid to Greece, Macedonia and Serbia," said UNHCR Director for Europe Vincent Cochetel.

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent has called for cooperation and joint efforts on "the highest level" to meet the needs of migrants and warned of "a dramatic increase" in the number of refugees coming via the Greek islands in the coming days.

UNHCR Representative in Serbia Hans Friedrich Schodder has told TV B92 that closing the border before the influx of refugees was "the wrong step."