More migrants arrive in Turkey from Greece under EU pact

A ferry carrying an unspecified number of migrants from the island of Lesbos landed in Dikili on Turkey's west coast accompanied by Turkish Coast Guard vessels, the source said on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on speaking publicly.

Ankara, Apr.8:Turkey's parliament has approved an agreement enabling Ankara to repatriate Pakistani migrants, as people continue to be sent to Turkey from Greece as part of a European Union (EU) deal to stem mass migration to Europe.

Those who left early yesterday were from Pakistan, it said.

Greece, which has borne the brunt of the migrant crisis, plans to evacuate a huge makeshift camp at the port of Piraeus ahead of the busy tourism season.

Meanwhile, the Vatican confirmed that Pope Francis would next week make a brief, unprecedented trip to Lesbos where thousands of migrants are facing potential deportation to Turkey under the deal.

One man, who called himself Ali, told AFP news agency, "We risked our lives to come here, we don't want to go back to Turkey because they are going to send us back to Pakistan". Police say they found the migrants hidden in the suspects' vehicles after stopping them on a regional road in central Serbia.

Merkel spoke at an event in Berlin Friday as Greece resumed deportations to Turkey under the deal that she has championed.

In return, Turkey is slated to receive benefits including visa-free travel for its citizens to Europe, which in the accord is promised "at the latest" by June 2016.

New figures published on Friday showed that the number of asylum applications in Germany surged in the first quarter of the year as officials processed a backlog of asylum applications from last year. "If the European Union does not take the necessary steps, then Turkey will not implement the agreement", Erdogan said in a speech at his presidential palace in Ankara. Newcomers to Turkey report challenges registering with the authorities and know their chances of being resettled from here to Europe are slim.

While concerns remain over the deal, Germany - Europe's top destination for refugees - said it had "got off to a good start". In the past ten weeks, she and her family have sought to cross to the Greek islands three times only to be intercepted on the Aegean by the Turkish coast guard.

Migrants at the Greek-Macedonian border keep on protesting and demanding the border checkpoints open, while those camping at Piraeus Port refuse to move to refugee centres.

While the operation has been running smoothly, human rights groups feared for the future of asylum seekers. "A setup that is so flawed, rushed and ill-prepared is ripe for mistakes, trampling the rights and well-being of some of the most vulnerable people", Gauri van Gulik, AI's deputy director for Europe, said in a statement. According to Greek authorities cited by Reuters on Friday, 149 migrants arrived by sea on three separate islands in just 24 hours.

Source: More migrants arrive in Turkey from Greece under EU pact