More migrants arrive as Greece suspends asylum applications

Over 500 migrants arrived at the Port of Lavrio near Athens Thursday after being intercepted south of the island of Crete, as Greece implements emergency measures to address a surge in Mediterranean crossings from Libya.

Consisting mostly of young men, the migrants were transferred overnight aboard a bulk carrier after their fishing trawler was intercepted by Greek authorities.

Service vessels helped bring them ashore at the mainland port. They will be sent to detention facilities near the capital.

Their transfer to mainland Greece was ordered because makeshift reception centers on the island of Crete have reached capacity, with roughly 500 new arrivals per day on the Mediterranean island since the weekend.

On Wednesday, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis announced that Greece would suspend asylum processing for migrants arriving by sea from North Africa for three months.

The measure targets arrivals on Crete and was taken amid diplomatic strain between the European Union and Libya over migration cooperation.

EU officials earlier this week were turned away from eastern Libya following an apparent disagreement on the format of talks planned on curbing crossings.

Authorities on Crete are struggling to provide basic services, using temporary facilities to house migrants, primarily from Somalia, Sudan, Egypt and Morocco, according to island officials.