The Greek government plans to dissolve many refugee hotspots that are concentrated in the region of Macedonia in northern Greece and spread them across the country, by September. After the ongoing operation at the Idomeni refugee camp, which the government has kept away from the spotlight to avoid any negative press coverage and reactions by solidarity groups and the general public, the next stage involves addressing the refugee hotspot at Hellinikon in Athens which has gradually deteriorated into a ghetto with increased criminal activity.

Meanwhile, Greek PM Alexis Tsipras expressed his satisfaction during his meeting with European Migration Commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos, Wednesday, underlining that the operation at Idomeni was so far successful. Tsipras claimed the operation was by and large a success due to the close relationship between the EU and Turkey. The Greek government hopes the relocation plan, included as one of the points in the deal between the EU and Turkey will bear fruits, something that will largely depend on the constant control of the refugee flows in the Aegean Sea. This does not seem a certainty, following Turkish PM Erdigan’s threats to lax his control over the flows after his rift with the EU over the free-visa travel to Turkish nationals.