Migrants search for shelter as more arrive on Greek island of KosA rush of migrants and refugees hav...

1. Migrants search for shelter as more arrive on Greek island
of Kos
Migrants search for shelter as more arrive on Greek island of Kos
A rush of migrants and refugees have poured onto the small Greek island of Kos in recent weeks,
leaving the nearby shores of Turkey in droves to make the relatively easy boat trip to the island.
They are among thousands fleeing instability and war in their home countries, seeking the safety of
Europe but have been met with the reality of a country ill-equipped to provide for even their most
basic needs. Hundreds are migrants sleeping rough in public parks and abandoned hotels on the
island.
See also: Preferential treatment for Syrians in Kos irks desperate migrants
The island currently has no formal processing center in place, despite the fact that the UN Refugee
Agency UNHCR, warned for months that the situation in Greece, in the midst of its own financial
crisis, would get worse. Since July, more than 7,000 people - the majority Syrian refugees - have
arrived on the shores of Kos.
On Tuesday, clashes broke out on the streets when authorities shepherded hundreds of Syrians in
the blazing heat into a football stadium in an attempt to process them. More than 1,000 were locked
into the stadium overnight without food, water or access to toilets.
Greek authorities have brought a ferry into Kos as a place to process Syrians seeking asylum, but
thousands more are still on the streets, waiting for help.
Kos struggles to deal with influx of refugees and migrants

2. An Afghan migrant child stands in front of makeshift shelters on August 16, 2015, outside the
abandoned Captain Elias hotel on the Greek island of Kos, where migrants arriving to the island
have found shelter.
Image: Louisa Gouliamaki/AFP

3. A young girl holds her sister on August 16, 2015 in the abandoned Captain Elias hotel on Kos.
Image: Louisa Gouliamaki/AFP

4. Afghan migrants stand outside the abandoned hotel, where dozens arriving to the island are
camping out.
Image: Louisa Gouliamaki/AFP
Turkish servicemen patrol along the coastline to prevent migrants from boarding boats to Kos on
early August 16, 2015 off the shore of Bodrum, southwest Turkey.
Image: Bulent Kilic/AFP

5. Migrants mostly from Iran, including children, start their journey on a dinghy from the coastal town
of Bodrum, Turkey, to nearby Kos, early Sunday, Aug. 16, 2015.
Image: Lefteris Pitarakis/Associated Press

6. A man shows his Syrian passport to journalists while he and other migrants and refugees line-up to
board on the bound ferry Eleftherios Venizelos in Kos, early Sunday, Aug. 16, 2015.The ferry is
functioning as a refugee registration center, where refugees, mostly Syrians, can stay as they wait
for temporary travel documents to leave the island.
Image: Alexander Zemlianichenko/Associated Press

7. Migrant boys play with a ball at a beach near the port in Kos, Sunday, Aug. 16, 2015.
Image: Alexander Zemlianichenko/Associated Press

8. Migrants and refugees sleep at a parking place as tourists, background, gather together for an
excursion near the port in Kos, Sunday, Aug. 16, 2015.
Image: Alexander Zemlianichenko/Associated Press

9. Migrants on a dinghy try to start their journey from the coastal town of Bodrum, Turkey, to Kos,
early Sunday, Aug. 16, 2015.
Image: Lefteris Pitarakis/Associated Press
Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.