Hungary Shuts Down Central Checkpoint on Serbian Border for 30 Days

Hungarian authorities closed the central Horgos checkpoint on its border with Serbia amid a massive influx of refugees, the Serbian Foreign Ministry said Wednesday.

BELGRADE (Sputnik) — The Hungarian Embassy in Belgrade informed the Serbian Foreign Ministry that Hungary would be suspending traffic on the road connecting the Hungarian town of Roszke and Serbia’s Horgos, as well as on the alternative highway between the two border settlements.

Thousands of migrants gathered in the Serbian border area as the new Hungarian legislation, introducing prison terms for crossing the border illegally, came into force on Tuesday.

According to the Hungarian Embassy, the decision comes as the current massive influx of migrants, many of whom are trying to break down the fence on the country's border with Serbia, threatens public security in Hungary.

Earlier in the day, a group of migrants burned tires near the Serbian-Hungarian border in an attempt to push back Hungarian police from the border.

Hungary is being used as a gateway to wealthier EU states by thousands of undocumented migrants. Budapest estimates that over 190,000 migrants have illegally crossed the country’s borders so far in 2015.