Refugees will face "the strongest possible action" if they enter Hungary illegally, an ad in Lebanese newspaper An-Nahar read Monday. The ad was also published in Al-Joumhouria and L'Orient Le Jour, Lebanon's French-language newspaper.
The right-wing government has cracked down on the flow of refugees coming from the Middle East, especially Syria, sealed its borders with Serbia since Sept.15, and erected a steel barrier on the Croatian border, slowing down traffic to the country.
Refugees crossing to Hungary illegally could face imprisonment if caught, the full-page advertisement warned.
In contrast, Doctors without Borders (MSF) took a full page in Al Quds, The Daily Star, and Al-Hayat in a plea to EU countries to open their borders while denouncing their "policies of deterrence."
"While European governments are using ad space in the Arab region to send messages of deterrence to refugees and migrants, MSF is using those same channels this week to publicly remind European leaders of their responsibilities," Aurelie Pontie, MSF's Humanitarian Coordinator for Displacement, told AFP.
According to the UNHCR, more than 4 million Syrians have fled the war and 6 million remain internally displaced. While some highly developed countries have pledged to resettle a certain amount of refugees, the majority remain in Lebanon, Turkey, and Jordan, Amnesty International reported.
U.S. State Secretary John Kerry announced Sunday that his country would accept 80,000 refugees in 2016 and 100,000 in 2017, an increase over the current annual cap of 70,000.
A month earlier, the Danish government placed advertisements in Lebanese newspapers, including English-language The Daily Star, to warn refugees about tighter restrictions. The ad said that social welfare for asylum seekers had been reduced by up to 50 percent and that registered asylum seekers couldn't send for their families for a year.