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A group of migrants move through snow towards a train station to be transferred to Austria, near the border with Croatia, in Dobova, Slovenia, Darko Bandic/AP/Press Association Images

Braving the snow in hope of a better life: 'Nothing can stop them'

The harsh winter weather has made migrants’ journey through Europe even harder.

IT’S THE first time that Arman Butt, a Pakistani man desperately seeking to reach western Europe, sees snow.

But as the 30-year-old goes limp in the harsh chill, stuck at the Slovenian-Austrian border, he wishes it was not quite so cold.

He is one of some 50 men braving freezing temperatures and walking the short distance that separates the Austrian border post from Slovenia.

Butt is from Lahore, in the east of Pakistan. He has been on the move since 20 September.

A few hours ago, he was pushed back into Slovenia by Austrian border guards. Wearing canvas shoes, his feet are frozen and he can barely walk.

Yet he is determined to keep trying until he makes it across.

Slovenian civil defence teams and army troops march alongside the migrants towards Austria’s Spielfeld frontier post.

Every day, some 900 refugees and migrants who have braved freezing-cold temperatures arrive here on trains from Croatia, further south.

Most people reaching Europe’s shores have fled wars, violence and persecution in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan.

Slovenia Migrants A man carries his belongings through snow with a group of migrants in Dobova, Slovenia. Darko Bandic Darko Bandic

Many others though, like Butt, are in search of a better life. They are facing major difficulties in getting across borders on the so-called Balkan migrant route to western Europe.

Another large group of men at the Slovenian border post of Sentilj – mainly Moroccans and Algerians – said they have been pushed back from the Austrian frontier up to five times each in recent days, leaving them in a state of limbo between the two countries.

Earlier this month, Austrian police manning the border post of Carinthia said they had pushed back “several hundred” migrants suspected of having claimed a false nationality in a bid to get through.

‘Nothing can stop them’ 

Several European states have introduced unprecedented border controls since the peak of the migrant crisis last year. EU powerhouse Germany – the migrants’ preferred destination – and Austria tightened controls in mid-September.

Sweden, long seen as a haven for refugees, has also introduced temporary controls, triggering a knock-on effect and prompting Denmark to do the same on its frontier with Germany.

Macedonia Greece Migrants Hungarian police officers control the arrival of people crossing the border from Greece. Boris Grdanoski / AP/Press Association Images Boris Grdanoski / AP/Press Association Images / AP/Press Association Images

Butt said he left Pakistan in September because he was convinced that “Europe had opened up its borders”.

“We can’t go backwards, we have spent too much money to come here,” he said, adding that he has already spent €7,000.

He has paid smugglers exorbitant sums to cross the Aegean Sea and then non-EU member Macedonia, which has made it especially hard since November for people not fleeing war zones to enter.

At a transit camp for migrants at Gevgelija near the Macedonian border with Greece, many people have fallen ill in recent days, “especially children”, because of the low temperatures that have hit Europe and the Balkans since the start of the year, according to aid worker Lence Zdravkin.

“More and more people are arriving here without any money, unable to continue their journeys,” Zdravkin said, adding that many had been left penniless by their smugglers.

People “arrive wet and with colds, with wet shoes kids have fever and are coughing,” said Jasmin Rexhepi, who works for a Macedonian NGO named Legis.

Macedonia Migrants Migrants walk towards the entrance of the transit centre for refugees near the southern Macedonia's town of Gevgelija. Boris Grdanoski / AP/Press Association Images Boris Grdanoski / AP/Press Association Images / AP/Press Association Images

Further north in Serbia, where temperatures have reached -8 degrees Celsius, a bus system has been set up to help migrants on the move reach the transit camp in Presevo near the Macedonian border.

“However it does not stop refugees, who are still arriving with children, elderly and even disabled people,” said Dafina Aliji, a local humanitarian activist.

Nothing can stop them.

More than a million refugees and migrants arrived in Europe in 2015 in the worst crisis of its kind to face the continent since World War II.

© AFP 2016

Read: More than one million refugees have entered Europe in 2015 – UN

Read: Syrian refugee who sold pens on the streets now owns three businesses

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    Mute Shane Walsh
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    Apr 9th 2019, 12:52 PM

    Very sad news and sadly happening too often.

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    Mute Padraic Mulry
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    Apr 9th 2019, 1:09 PM

    @Shane Walsh: what happened

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    Mute Shane Walsh
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    Apr 9th 2019, 1:29 PM

    @Padraic Mulry: Fatality on the line. (See Irish Rail Twitter)

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    Mute Chessie Cat
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    Apr 9th 2019, 12:38 PM

    Close the comments ffs!

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    Mute Roy Dowling
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    Apr 9th 2019, 1:01 PM

    @Chessie Cat: Why?

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    Mute Dave Harris
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    Apr 9th 2019, 1:04 PM

    @Chessie Cat: always the houlier than thou person in the with close the comments comment. Grow up.

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    Mute David
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    Apr 9th 2019, 1:25 PM

    @Dave Harris: People not person..

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    Mute Chessie Cat
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    Apr 9th 2019, 1:38 PM

    @Dave Harris:

    If you were there when it happened you wouldn’t be so smug!

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    Mute Richard o Rourke
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    Apr 9th 2019, 1:14 PM

    Update: Services between Bray and Greystones suspended UFN due to a tragic incident on the line. Bus services are accepting tickets. Bus transfers for Rosslare services. DARTs operating between Bray and Howth/Malahide, significant knock on delays can be expected https://t.co/vtXSi8G1Lu

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    Mute A Pop Fan's Dream
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    Apr 9th 2019, 6:48 PM

    Why the cover-up?
    Sounds like a suicide to me.
    Intelligence-insulting euphemisms like “tragic incident” really don’t help.

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    Mute Jessie
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    Mar 17th 2020, 3:31 AM

    @A Pop Fan’s Dream: Maybe the author phrased it in that such way out of respect for the family. It is no ones business but the families about what happened to their loved one. The main point that was being said in this article is that the rail services has been suspended, not to spread the gory details on what happened. Be careful about what you comment on these posts. You don’t know who is reading it, including the persons family (which is me).

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