North Macedonia police arrest 41 Syrian refugees

Police in North Macedonia have found 42 Syrian migrants in a truck in the southeastern part of the country near the border with Greece.

The police said in a statement that its patrol car followed the truck near the town of Star Dojran, 160 kilometers south of the capital of Skopje, intending to stop the truck and inspect it.

The police clarified that before they could inspect the truck, the driver and a passenger jumped out while the vehicle was moving. The truck then turned and hit the police patrol car. The police officers were not injured.

The statement indicated that the police discovered 41 Syrian migrants and one from Bangladesh packed in the truck. None of them were injured.

The police transferred the migrants to a migrant shelter in the border town of Gevgelija, pending deportation back to Greece, where police believe they came from.

Police said this was the first large group of migrants discovered in North Macedonia in the past six months.

The small Balkan country was a main route for migrants wishing to go to wealthier countries in Europe.