Refugees head to Croatia to avoid Hungary

Refugees have started heading from Serbia to Croatia instead of Hungary, which has rushed to set up a razor-wire fence to stop their flow onto its soil.

A first busload of refugees arrived near Serbia’s border with Croatia on Wednesday.

The group, which mostly consisted of Syrians or Afghans, came off at the Serbian border town of Sid after an overnight journey from the country’s border with Macedonia at the southernmost Serbian town of Presevo.

More than 200,000 refugees have entered Hungary so far this year, mostly heading for Austria before setting off for Germany.

The move by Budapest to stem their progress has attracted international criticism.

“Meeting those fleeing conflict and persecution with razor wire, troops and draconian new laws, Hungary is showing the ugly face of Europe’s shambolic response to the growing refugee crisis,” said London-based Human rights group Amnesty International.