Greece Starts Emptying Idomeni Border Camp as New Arrivals Slow

Greece said Saturday it has begun emptying the main migrant camp on its Macedonian border, as the huge tide of refugees flooding into the country slows to a trickle following the EU-Turkey deal.

Eight buses transported around 400 refugees from the Idomeni camp Friday, while a dozen more buses were waiting for migrants so far reluctant to leave the border, shut down earlier this month.

Those persuaded to board the first buses were mainly parents with children who can no longer tolerate the difficult conditions in the squalid camp.

A total of 11,603 people remained at the sprawling border camp on Saturday, according to the latest official count.

Giorgos Kyritsis, spokesman of the SOMP agency which is coordinating Athens' response to the refugee crisis, said the operation to evacuate Idomeni will intensify from Monday.

"More than 2,000 places can be found immediately for the refugees that are at the Idomeni camp and from Monday on this number can double", Kyritsis added, pledging to create 30,000 more places in the next three weeks in new shelters.

Meanwhile, the flow of refugees arriving in Greece is slowing dramatically.

Greece Thursday said no migrants had arrived on its Aegean islands in the previous 24 hours, for the first time since the controversial EU-Turkey deal came into force Sunday.