Athens -- The assassination of his father by Taliban militants forced 13-year-old Jahid to escape his home in Afghanistan.

But his long perilous journey toward asylum in Europe has left him and thousands others trapped for months in a makeshift camp in Greece's western port city of Patras.

Dumbfounded by the government's neglect and the European Union's tough immigration policies, Jahid's future lies in limbo.

Camps such as the one in Patras, where huts are made of dirty pieces of garbage, cardboard and plastic, have gradually been established over the past few years to accommodate immigrants from Central Asia, Africa and the Middle East. The immigrants make endless attempts to stow away aboard a ferry bound for Italy, believing they have better chances of asylum and finding work there.

Patras officials say the number of immigrants living in makeshift camps by the port, waiting to sneak into a truck and onto a ship, now exceeds 4,000 and that the camps are no longer manageable. The refugees are forbidden to stay in Greece, but are prevented from leaving.

Human rights groups say the situation is getting worse and illustrates the growing turmoil within the European Union and its policy on migrants.

"I had thought that the worst was over after traveling by foot and bus through Iran and Turkey and then sailing in a small boat in rough seas to get to Greece," said Jahid, amid a row of dirty shacks in what Patras residents refer to as the Afghani shantytown.

"Now, after being stuck here for six months I think that this is the real nightmare because I am trapped - where can I go? It has gotten really difficult to sneak onto a truck to Italy and those that get lucky often get caught by the Italians and get sent back here," says Jahid pulling out his 30-day expulsion order, written in Greek.

Sitting at the crossroads of three continents, Greece has become the main transit point for immigrants seeking entry into the European Union. The number of illegal immigrants arriving in the country has surged over the past year.

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