Speaking to private broadcaster Action 24, Plevris said Greece would further tighten its migration framework and rejected what he described as external interference from international institutions, including the United Nations and European bureaucratic bodies, in national migration policy.

He said that repeated concern expressed by organisations such as Amnesty International and UN agencies reinforced his support for the government’s approach, adding that criticism from such bodies strengthened rather than weakened his political position.

The comments come as Greece’s conservative government faces increased migrant arrivals via the Mediterranean route from eastern Libya, prompting closer engagement with Libyan authorities and broader support for stricter European Union migration policies.

Greece is also cooperating with eastern Libyan authorities through coast guard training and economic support programmes, including employment initiatives and investment cooperation aimed at reducing migrant departures across the Mediterranean, according to officials.

The policy shift aligns with wider discussions within the European Union over establishing migrant processing centres outside Europe for individuals whose asylum claims have been rejected, a proposal that has drawn criticism from rights groups.

Greek authorities reported that arrivals and interceptions on the island of Crete increased by more than 20 percent to around 5,500 through May compared with the same period last year, with flows accelerating in early June.

Libya has become a key transit hub for migrants attempting to reach Europe, facilitated by human trafficking networks operating amid prolonged instability across the country’s borders with multiple neighbouring states.

Analysts say eastern Libyan authorities are seeking deeper diplomatic and financial engagement with European governments as migration pressures increase across the central Mediterranean route.

The Emergency Medicine and Support Center, which operates under the Libyan health ministry, said the bodies washed ashore in the coastal city of Khums, about 118 km east of Tripoli.

Authorities said all the bodies have been buried. Images shared by the agency showed rescue workers wearing protective suits handling the remains during recovery and burial operations.

Libya has remained a major transit point for migrants attempting to cross the Mediterranean since the 2011 uprising that toppled former leader Muammar Qaddafi.

Thousands of migrants, mainly from sub-Saharan Africa, continue to use the country as a departure point despite dangerous desert crossings and high-risk sea journeys toward Europe.

The Tripoli Criminal Court convicted the four defendants in absentia, handing down prison terms ranging from 12 to 22 years, according to a statement published by the attorney general’s office on Facebook. The office did not disclose the identities of those convicted.

Prosecutors said the group was involved in smuggling undocumented migrants from the western coastal city of Zuwara, one of Libya’s main departure points for migrants attempting to reach Europe across the Mediterranean.

Authorities said the gang also abducted migrants and extorted ransom payments from their families, sending relatives videos showing victims being tortured in order to force payment.

Libya has become a major transit route for migrants and asylum seekers fleeing war, persecution and poverty in Africa and the Middle East since the 2011 NATO-backed uprising that toppled longtime leader Muammar Gaddafi and plunged the country into prolonged instability.

Migrants often travel through dangerous desert crossings before attempting sea journeys to Europe in overcrowded and unsafe boats operated by smuggling networks.Two weeks ago, at least 17 bodies believed to be migrants were recovered from the shores of Zuwara by a local medical service center, highlighting the continuing risks faced by those attempting the crossing.

Separately, Libya’s Public Prosecutor’s Office on Monday ordered the arrest of another criminal group accused of sending migrants from the eastern city of Tobruk across the Mediterranean on an unsafe and dilapidated vessel that later capsized.

Authorities said the incident resulted in the deaths of 38 migrants from Sudan, Egypt and Ethiopia.International scrutiny over Libya’s treatment of migrants has intensified in recent years.

In November, several countries including the United Kingdom, Spain, Norway and Sierra Leone urged Libya during a United Nations meeting in Geneva to close detention centers where rights groups say migrants and refugees have been tortured, abused and in some cases killed.