Hungary frantic to fence out flood of migrants

Asylum seekers now fleeing by land, avoiding dangerous crossings of Mediterranean

SUBOTICA, SERBIA— Thousands of migrants, many from Syria, poured into Hungary on Tuesday as soldiers frantically tried to finish a border fence to keep them out — the latest flashpoint as Europe struggles to handle a torrent of asylum seekers.

The rush over the border by migrants fleeing war and poverty in the Middle East, Africa and Asia followed Macedonia’s decision to lift a three-day blockade of its border with Greece after thousands of migrants simply stormed past the Macedonian police who tried to stop them with force.

Nearly 10,000 migrants, including many women with babies and small children, have crossed into Serbia over the past few days and then head- ed up north toward European Union-member Hungary. Once inside the 28-nation EU, they seek to reach more prosperous western European nations such as Germany, the Netherlands or Sweden.

The so-called Balkan corridor is becoming increasingly popular as migrants seek to avoid the dangerous boat crossings in the Mediterranean from North Africa to Italy. About 140,000 migrants have reached Hungary already this year, over three times as many as in all of 2014. According to Hungarian police data, 2,093 migrants were detained while crossing illegally Monday, the highest figure so far this year. Over the past week, the average was nearly 1,500 people a day.

Hungary, beleaguered by the influx and facing a right-wing backlash, has been rushing to build the fence both as a physical barrier and a symbol of its tough anti-foreigner stance. The government’s anti-migrant billboard campaign and efforts to link migration with terrorism have drawn sharp criticism from the United Nations and others, who say it vilifies refugees and promotes xenophobia.

Hundreds of migrants, including a pregnant woman holding the hand of a small boy, children, and one man pushing another man in a wheelchair, walked along the tracks Tuesday leading into Hungary, escorted by police. At refugee centres around the country, the majority request asylum, but most quickly leave for other EU countries before their claims are settled.

SANTI PALACIOS/THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Syrian refugees escape war and poverty Tuesday along roads near the town of Idomeni, Greece, preparing to cross into Macedonia, which has lifted a three-day blockade of its border.