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World

Serbia steps up border patrols on border with Hungary to try stop massive exodus to EU

Associated Press
Published | Updated
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    Kosovo migrants walk by the road near the northern Serbian town of Subotica, not far from the border between Serbia and Hungary, Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2015. Serbian security forces have stepped up patrols and deployed an elite unit on the border with Hungary, trying to prevent an illegal flow of migrants that has triggered alarm in many European Union countries. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic) (The Associated Press)

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    A Kosovo migrant looks through the window of a police van after being detained by Serbian border police near the northern Serbian town of Subotica, not far from the border between Serbia and Hungary, Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2015. Serbian security forces have stepped up patrols and deployed an elite unit on the border with Hungary, trying to prevent an illegal flow of migrants that has triggered alarm in many European Union countries. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic) (The Associated Press)

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    Hungarian police control camera on a tower is seen on the border between Serbia and Hungary, not far from the northern Serbian town of Subotica, Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2015. Serbian security forces have stepped up patrols and deployed an elite unit on the border with Hungary, trying to prevent an illegal flow of migrants that has triggered alarm in many European Union countries. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic) (The Associated Press)

SUBOTICA, Serbia – Serbian security forces have stepped up patrols and deployed an elite unit on the border with Hungary, trying to prevent an illegal flow of migrants that has triggered alarm in many European Union countries.

A gendarmerie unit was sent to the border on Wednesday to try to crack down on the massive exodus of mostly Kosovo Albanians who have been fleeing poverty and unemployment in search for jobs and better life in the European Union.

Serbian authorities say that an average of 1,000 asylum seekers get caught daily by either Hungarian or Serbian border guards as they try to cross illegally through forests. They also include many Syrians, Afghans, Iraqis and others.

Kosovo, which declared independence from Serbia in 2008, is one of the poorest countries in Europe.