ATHENS: "No to the Taleban" was the slogan heard in Sappho square on the Greek island of Lesbos on Monday evening, where asylum seekers gathered for a peaceful protest against the militant Islamists' takeover of their homeland. About 200 migrants and refugees from Afghanistan-with some from Iran too-waved Afghan flags, singing and chanting. The Taleban were in control of Afghanistan on Monday after President Ashraf Ghani fled the country. Thousands of people were trying to escape Kabul, with scenes of chaos as crowds gathered at the airport.
"We came to show to the world what is going on in my country," 35-year-old Amidi Rahmazolla, who has been living on Lesbos, told AFP. Her family is stuck in Kabul, her father is old and her brother is sick. She says that they want to come to Greece as well. "The Taleban are dangerous people. They don't want young people to go to school. Women cannot go to university." The protesters expressed their concern about the fate of their relatives in Afghanistan, with some telling AFP they have been unable to contact them. They called on the international community to defend their people-especially the women.
These refugees and migrants say the past three days have been a nightmare. Some said their families had told them they do not have access to medical care and hospitals are closed. They have run out of money and cannot escape. "I cannot sleep, my family is sick, they need money," said 29-year-old Abdul haq Salarzay, also stuck on the Aegean island for the past two years. He says he wants to borrow money from friends and bring them to Greece as well.
"They are in danger. Maybe I will go there to fetch them," he says. "You cannot trust the Taleban." However, Greece's Migration and Asylum Minister Notis Mitarachi ruled out the idea that there would be new flows of migration from Afghanistan. "It is clear that our country will not be a gateway for a new wave of refugees," Mitarachi told local TV earlier on Monday. He also said that two months ago Greece deemed Turkey a safe third country for asylum seekers, among others from Afghanistan.
"It is up to the European Union to strengthen the 2016 Joint Statement," he said, referring to the agreement that year with Turkey to help support migrants in the country and so ease pressure on the EU's member states. "But also, to support Turkey, which as a neighbouring country will face more pressure than the rest of Europe," Mitarachi said. Asked to estimate how many people could arrive in Greece, Mitarachi said only "a very small number of arrivals" and added that the country doesn't want to experience the 2015 situation when nearly a million people crossed its borders before moving to northern Europe. - AFP