Ahmad 
The French newspaper “Le Monde” reported that more than 1,500 migrants, mostly Egyptians, arrived from Libya to the Greek island of Gavdos in 2024, and Athens hopes to cooperate with Egypt to confront this phenomenon.
Despite repeated accusations of violent operations to repel illegal immigration by the Greek coastguard, the islands in the northeastern Aegean, which face Turkey, remain Greece’s main gateway.
Since the beginning of 2024, the number of refugees arriving on the islands has increased to 8,000, compared to 3,000 in the same period in 2023.
For smugglers working in Libya, access to Italy seems increasingly complicated, as the Greek island of Crete has not yet been a real destination for migrants from North Africa.
To avoid creating a new migration corridor, the key is cooperation with Egypt, so the Greek government welcomes the signing of the agreement between the EU and Egypt last month, which provides for €7.4 billion in economic aid in exchange for enhanced border controls in Egypt and Libya.
Libyan-Tunisian talks to attempt reopening the “Ras Jedir” border crossing