Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis announced on Wednesday that Greece would suspend asylum processing for migrants arriving by sea from North Africa for three months.
More than 500 people were transferred to the port of Lavrio near Athens on Thursday after being intercepted south of the island of Crete, as Greece implements emergency measures to address a surge in Mediterranean crossings from Libya.
The migrants, consisting mostly of young men, were transferred overnight aboard a bulk carrier after their fishing trawler was intercepted by Greek authorities.
Service vessels helped bring them ashore at the mainland port. They will be sent to detention facilities near the capital.
More than 200 migrants were transferred to the port of Piraeus near Athens, in separate operations from Crete.
The transfers to the mainland were ordered because makeshift reception centres on Crete have reached capacity, with around 500 new arrivals per day on the Mediterranean island since the weekend.
By Kucalo reporter
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