Migrants wait in front of a reception centre close to Croatia's border with Serbia, in Opatovac, Croatia, Tuesday, Sept. 22, 2015.Zoltan Balogh/The Associated Press
Along the refugee and migrant trail through the Balkans in southeastern Europe, the crisis continued and drew old foes into a new dispute.
Serbia gave Croatia an ultimatum to reopen its border, threatening unspecified countermeasures. Croatia shut all but one of its crossings with Serbia last week to block the migrant influx, which has reached 34,900 in just a few days. But the action has crippled the economy in Serbia, a conduit for cargo across Croatia to Europe.
Croatia started letting trucks carrying food from Serbia across the border on Tuesday afternoon, but Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic said that was not enough, adding that all cargo traffic must be restored
Vucic had called an emergency session of all security services, including the military, to discuss the crisis. The two nations have a tense history after fighting each other in the Balkan wars of the 1990s.
"This is a scandal of international proportions," Vucic said. "Croatia has breached all European agreements and directives."
Croatia was angry by Serbia busing migrants to its border.
"Mix it up a little," Croatian Prime Minister Zoran Milanovic said. "Send them a bit to Hungary and Romania."
Bad weather in Greece compounded the migrants' misery, as thunderstorms drenched hundreds camped out in Athens' Victoria Square.
"We have nothing. No water, no food, no shelter. We are living in tents, we need help," said Mohamed Saber Nazari, a 20-year-old Afghan. "You see all the families living in the rain, with small children? Something must be organized for us."
A 45-year-old taxi driver sympathized with their plight. More than 20 years ago, Adrian Mustafa had walked from Albania to Greece, where he has been living ever since.
"If you go through what these people are going through, only then will you understand," he said. "They don't want to stay here, but they live under bad conditions."