The Governor of a region in northern Greece is demanding that state of emergency be declared in the area around the Idomeni border crossing.

At least 13 000 people are stranded on the border between Macedonia and Greece, as Macedonian authorities are applying restrictions to the flow of migrants for several weeks, local and international media quoted him as saying.

Some 30 000 migrants are thought to be stuck across Greece, with the number expected to rise to 70 000 in March.

Apostolos Tzitzikostas, the governor of the region of Central Macedonia, has called on the EU to act against countries that are closing borders.

Macedonia is one of the countries on the Western Balkans migrant route that have been applying restrictions in the last few weeks, after Austria warned it would only let a limited number of migrants pass on a daily basis.

Western Balkan countries have also been enforcing a ban on "economic migrants", i.e. people who don't come from Syria and Iraq. The move has resulted in thousands of people from Afghanistan, which is not in the list, being stuck on the Greece-Macedonia border.