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THESSALONIKI, Greece (AP) — Police in northern Greece say 93 Syrian migrants were released from locked cargo train carriage, after being tricked by smugglers into traveling in the wrong direction.
The migrants, including 18 children, were discovered Wednesday at the border town of Idomeni and told police they had boarded the train just over the frontier in Macedonia after paying smugglers 500 euros ($570) each to travel north to Serbia.
Police said the migrants were not detained and did not need medical attention.
The number of Syrians reaching Greece illegally has surged in the past year as the civil war in their country continues into a fifth year.
Greece is a major transit point for illegal immigration and for asylum seekers hoping to the live in the European Union.
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