Istanbul
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called on Greece to open its borders to refugees, a day before he meets with European officials dismayed by the prospect.
“You should also open the gates and take a weight off your mind,” Erdogan said at a televised event in Istanbul, according to NTV. “After the latest developments in Idlib, Syria, we’ve given the refugees the opportunity to go where they’d like.”
Fighting in Idlib, the last Syrian rebel stronghold, has brought an estimated 1.5 million refugees streaming to the border with Turkey. Ankara announced in response last week that it would no longer stand in the way if refugees and migrants it already hosts seek to cross the border with Europe, creating new strains with Greece. Turkey is the world’s biggest host of displaced people, with more than 3.5 million Syrians already on its soil.– NTV
