(VOVworld) - The Macedonian parliament approved on Monday the extension of the state of emergency in force on the country's southern and northern borders until the end of the year.

A refugee woman carries a baby as she walks on the railtracks at the refugee camp of Idomeni near the Greek-Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia border in northern Greece, 28 March 2016. Photo: EPA

Macedonian Defense Minister Zoran Jolevski said the extension is a necessary measure against the increasing number of refugees entering and passing through the country.
The goal of the extension is to ensure that the interior ministry and the army continue to fulfill their task of guarding the borders. The Macedonian government declared a thirty-day state of emergency on its southern and northern borders in August 2015 because of the migrant crisis.
A month later, this was extended until 15 June 2016.