The United Nations refugee agency is assisting refugees and migrants amid chaotic scenes over the weekend as thousands of people tried to cross into the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) from the Greek border.

In a press release, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said the situation was "noticeably calmer and more orderly" on Sunday and Monday, as almost 2,000 individuals crossed from Greece into former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, fleeing the war in Syria. The majority of people — including many young families with small children — said they had passed through Turkey and travelled by boat to Greece.

According to UNHCR, More than 10,000 people had reached Serbia since Saturday night after crossing from Greece to the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and take a train or bus at the town of Gevgelija.

In Serbia, UNHCR has been supporting the authorities and non-governmental organizations in receiving and assisting new arrivals at the Presevo transit centre, in the south. The agency has released limited food stocks for distribution and, in response to a Serbian government appeal, is looking at ways to bring in more supplies, including sleeping mats, blankets, tents and accommodation halls.

Adapted from the UN

Photo: UNHCR