Greece moved to slow the flow of migrants from its islands to the mainland, as thousands of homeless refugees were trapped in the country by border limits imposed along a Balkan route to richer nations in northern Europe. From its northern frontier with FYROM to its port of Piraeus in the south, Greece was inundated with refugees and migrants after border shutdowns cascaded through the Balkans, stranding at least 20,000 in the country.

Hundreds of people were temporarily accommodated at the disused airport of Ellinikon, in the southern suburbs. Sleeping mats were strewn across the terminal among biscuit wrappers as many women sat on the floor, some of them weeping. After staying there, many were those who opted to continue their route on foot, flooding the main roads, as they set to cross the country on foot, in order to pass through the borders, hoping to pass through them, despite harsh policing.

Greece is mired in a full-blown diplomatic dispute with some EU countries over their border slowdowns and closures. That finds both Greece and the migrants caught in the middle between an increasingly fractious Europe, where several countries are reluctant to accept more asylum-seekers, and Turkey, which has appeared unwilling or unable to staunch the torrent of people leaving its shores in barely seaworthy smuggling boats bound for Greek islands.

Hastily setup camps for refugees and other migrants are full. Thousands of people wait through the night, shivering in the cold at the Greek-FYROM border, in the country’s main port of Piraeus, in squares dotted around Athens, or on dozens of buses parked up and down Greece’s main north-south highway.

Greece asked its passenger ferry companies and travel agencies on Friday to cut back on bringing migrants and refugees from frontline islands to the mainland and said its own chartered ships would stay put for a few days.The moves, described by Greece’s shipping minister as temporary, are designed to stem a flow of people mostly fleeing violence in the Middle East.

Most refugees arrive in the European Union after a short but at times dangerous journey by small boats from Turkey to nearby Greek islands such as Lesvos. The vast majority of those reaching Greece, Europe’s main gateway for migrants, have been Syrians, Afghans and Iraqis fleeing war at home.