More people have arrived in Greece in the last four months than the entirety of 2022. What kinds of conflicts and crises are pushing people out of their homelands and how are organizations like ours providing support and hope in the midst of uncertainty?

In the last four months, more than 25,000 people arrived on Greece’s shores seeking refuge and asylum. That’s more than the entirety of 2022. 

And now, with increased conflict in the Middle East such as the Palestinian War, more and more people are arriving. Before news articles or data reports, islands like Kos and Samos as well as Athenian suburbs like Victoria are the first to see and deal with the impacts of these crises. 

At The Hub on Kos, we have just surpassed 6,000 total registrations, and the estimated number of people on the island has spiked from around 1,000 in August to over 4,000 in October. Facilities are severely overcrowded and resources are growing sparse. In Athens, places like Victoria Square are transforming and becoming reminiscent of 2018, where entire families are living in poverty and homelessness. Closed Control Access Camps (CCACs) are at full capacity for the first time in three years, leaving few options for those who have completed asylum applications.

So, you might be wondering, why is migration to Greece spiking again and what will happen in the coming months? 

In 2023, groups who make up the largest portion of Greece’s incoming refugees are from Palestine, Afghanistan, Syria, and Somalia. Palestine has been facing persecution by the Israeli government for decades, which has worsened severely in the last several weeks with the development of full-on war against the Palestinian people. Afghans have been facing the resurgence of Taliban control since mid-2021, with severe deterioration of women’s rights to education and participation in public spheres as a consequence. An estimated 97% of Afghans are living in poverty since the Taliban’s takeover, exacerbated by natural disasters including drought, earthquakes, and floods. And more recently, in October, the Pakistani government began to crack down on undocumented Afghans living within their borders, threatening the safety and security of millions of people. UNHCR calls the four-decade long displacement of the Afghan people “one of the largest and most protracted displacement situations,” in modern history. Syrians seeking refuge in Turkey due to the decade-plus long civil war are now experiencing a “double displacement” in the wake of a series of high-magnitude earthquakes that struck in February 2023. For Syrians still within their homeland, hostilities have escalated in recent weeks, with recent reports estimating nearly 70,000 newly displaced people. In Somalia, some half of the country’s 17 million-person population faces acute food insecurity, malnutrition, and starvation. Since 2009, the ongoing civil war and presence of militant group al-Shabaab threatens the peace and safety of civilians. This is just a small glimpse into the types of conflict and instability that forces people to flee their homelands in search of a better life. 

With conflict on the rise, asylum applications are being processed en masse to make room for all the new arrivals. People are being dumped on the mainland with no resources: in September, over 900 refugees were transferred from CCACs on the islands to the mainland. 

Every year, we see an increase of people arriving during the summer months because the weather and increased small boat traffic allow it. But this year, there are more factors at play that have led to such a profound increase in new arrivals in the last few months. No one is sure what the future will hold, but with the ongoing war in Palestine things are sure to escalate before they calm down again. In the meantime, organizations such as ours will continue to be indiscriminately devoted to helping people on the move. In solidarity and dedication, there is hope.