Spain receives first group of refugees

Spain received it first group of refugees - 11 Eritreans and one Syrian - who arrived from Italy in capital Madrid, the media reported on Monday.

According to the Spanish interior ministry the refugees, four women and eight men, were received on Sunday evening by the Secretary of State for Security, Francisco Martinez, and Secretary General of Immigration and Emigration, Marina del Corral, Efe news reported.

The ministry said that several organisations collaborating in this project will be in charge of refugees in different places in Spain.

They will also attend to their basic needs including health amenities, food, education and integration in the country, as marked by European Union guidelines.

"This is the first movement in the pilot project conducted by Spain to implement refugee resettlement process agreed by the EU," the ministry said.

Authorities also stressed the fact that Spain is among "the first five European countries that have started pilot projects to promote the relocation procedure."