EU plans action for minors on Greek islands

But the EU and its member states have now sprung into action after Turkey last month threatened to open its borders to refugees leaving Turkey for Greece.

A handful of member states earlier this week agreed to take in some 1,500 unaccompanied minors from Greece.

Ylva Johansson, the European commissioner for home affairs, says solutions are needed to help many others.

"My mission together with the Greek government is to put in place a process to protect and care for these vulnerable children and teenagers," she told MEPs on Tuesday (10 March).

Johansson and European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen will both be in Athens on Thursday to discuss the plans.

They will also discuss the controversial measure by Greece to suspend asylum claims for a month.

"I will also ask the Greek government how they will act now to make sure that they comply to EU law and the right to asylum and also the principle of non-refoulement," said Johansson.

Her comments follow video footage from Human Rights Watch showing over 450 squeezed together in the hull of a Greek navy boat.

Johansson said her proposal on minors is about relocating them to other EU states, along with housing and medical aid.

Citing figures from the EU's police agency Europol, Johansson said Greece had some 5,500 children who had travelled alone to the country.

Around 10 percent are younger than 14 years of age, she said. Many disappear from Greek reception centres.

"I am afraid that many of them fall in the hands of criminals," said Johansson.

The problem is not new.

In November, Michalis Chrisochoidis, Greece's minister for citizens' protection, said he had sent letters to every member state asking for help.

"I have asked for each country to take in voluntarily a small number of these unaccompanied minors. Unfortunately, I received only one response to that letter," he had said at the time.

Greece has in the past been accused of mistreating minors as well.

Human Rights Watch in a 2016 report accused Greece of keeping minors seeking asylum in prison-like conditions for weeks and months.