Flooded With Asylum Searchers, Greece Freezes Applications To Affirm Anti-TPPO Attitudes

Illustration of asylum seekers. (Barbara Zandoval-Unsplash)

JAKARTA - Greece plans to impose a three-month suspension of asylum applications for North African migrants arriving by boat on Friday 11 July.

The effort stems the surge in migrants from Libya which the Greek government sees as "invasion."

"We have made a difficult but absolutely necessary decision to temporarily suspend the process of examining asylum applications for those arriving by sea from North African countries," Greek Prime Minister (PM) Kyriakos Mitsotakis said in a statement to German tabloid Bild on Friday, July 11, quoted by AFP.

The plan, if realized, will be contained in a temporary emergency law and will allow asylum seekers to be detained in camps for up to 18 months.

The strong signal that this policy will be approved comes from conservative political parties holding the most seats in the Greek parliament.

"This decision sends a clear message, without providing space for misinterpretation, to a network of human trafficking crimes (TPPO): Greece is not an open transit route. The journey is dangerous, the results are uncertain, and the money paid to smugglers is ultimately wasted," continued the Prime Minister of Greece.

The Greek Migration Ministry said more than 14,000 migrants entered the country as of mid-2025, including more than 2,000 Libyan migrants in recent days.