Greek police find 41 migrants alive in refrigerated truck

Greek police say they have found 41 migrants, mostly Afghans, alive in a refrigerated truck at a motorway near the northern city of Xanthi.

Migrants are seen inside a truck found by police, near the town of Xanthi, on Monday, Nov. 4, 2019. Source: AAP

Forty-one migrants, mostly Afghans, have been found hiding in a refrigerated truck at a motorway in northern Greece, police say.

The migrants were not injured, a police official said, adding that the refrigeration system had not been turned on.

Migrants are seen inside a truck found by police, as ambulance stuff arrive to the scene near the town of Xanthi, on Monday, Nov. 4, 2019. Source: AAP

Police stopped the truck on a highway near the northern Greek city of Xanthi on Monday for a regular check.

They arrested the driver and took him and the migrants to a nearby police station for identification.

Greece is currently struggling with the biggest resurgence in refugee arrivals since 2015, when more than a million people crossed into Europe from Turkey via Greece.

About 34,000 asylum seekers and refugees are being held in camps on the Aegean islands close to Turkey.

Last month, 39 migrants, all believed to be Vietnamese, were found dead in a refrigerated truck near London.