A total of 997 refugees and immigrants landed on the shores of the northern Aegean islands in February.
Out of the total number, 533 were identified and registered at the reception centre in Lesvos, 47 in Chios and 397 in Samos. This is a slight drop compared to last year in February when 699 refugees and immigrants had arrived on the islands (252 in Lesvos, 275 in Chios and 172 in Samos).
The increased flows towards Lesvos and Samos in comparison to the almost zero arrivals in Chios are attributed by Greek authorities to the tightening of policing measures by the Turkish side, and more specifically, the area between Chios and the Eritrea peninsula, which targets Turkish nationals attempting to flee to Greece in fear of persecution by the Erdogan regime.
According to the official website of the Turkish coastguard, a total of 25 operations were conducted in Turkish territorial waters in February, primarily between Turkey and Chios, which resulted in 1,046 people being prevented from reaching Greece.