Germany: Rally calls for EU to accept asylum seekers

By Erbil Basay

BERLIN (AA) -Rallying in the German capital Berlin on Saturday, thousands of protesters called on the EU to accept asylum seekers at Greece's border.

Gathering in a large rally organized by the Seebrucke (Sea Bridge) movement, protesters criticized the EU's migration policy with slogans calling for open borders and action to help asylum seekers.

A speaker at the demonstration said: "We know that there is space in Germany for asylum seekers who have been drowned, humiliated, tortured and killed at the Greek border."

The Seebrucke movement announced that 4,000 people attended the demonstration, with another 5,000 attending a similar demonstration in Hamburg.

Saying that the EU failed to keep its promises to support migrants in Turkey, Ankara recently announced it would no longer try to stop asylum seekers from reaching Europe.

Thousands of asylum seekers have since flocked to Turkey’s Edirne province -- which borders Greece and Bulgaria -- to make their way to Europe.

The Greek reaction to the asylum seekers has been harsh, with many battered, attacked and tear-gassed, and several killed by Greek forces.

Turkey, which already hosts nearly 4 million Syrian migrants, more than any other country in the world, has said it would be unable to absorb yet another refugee wave.