In early September, three mothers from Syria and Afghanistan went with their children to the Malakasa Reception and Identification Centre to seek protection. As Refugee Support Aegean (RSA) reports, the mothers were brought before a court on charges of “illegal stay”. The court adjourned the hearings and ordered that the mothers be reunited with their children and taken to the centre in Malakasa so their asylum applications could be registered.
These are not isolated incidents.
According to official figures presented by RSA, 3,619 criminal prosecutions were initiated in Greece in the first half of 2026 for “illegal” stay, entry or exit. Of these, 2,498 were for “illegal stay”. At the end of June, 311 people were being held in prisons or detention centres after being convicted of these offences.
As the Greek Forum of Refugees, we call on the authorities to ensure that people seeking asylum in mainland Greece can submit their applications safely. Going to the authorities to seek protection should never lead to arrest or to parents being separated from their children.
