Friday, April 25, 2025
9:51 PM
Doha,Qatar
Migrants at Lesbos hurled stones and torched offices used by asylum officials

Migrants clash with police, torch Greek camp offices

Migrants at a camp on the Greek island of Lesbos on Monday hurled stones at police and torched temporary offices used by asylum officials in an hour-long protest over conditions.

Jose Carreira, executive director of the European Asylum Support Office (EASO), said at least four shipping containers where interviews were conducted were entirely destroyed, and three more were damaged.

‘Incidents have occurred in the past but this is the most serious one,’ Carreira told AFP.

‘We are looking into ways of guaranteeing that this might not happen again,’ said Carreira, who is in Athens for meetings with Greece's immigration ministry.

No-one was hurt in the incident as the blaze was quickly brought under control by firefighters, but Carreira said it could be days before asylum interviews can resume.

Around 70 migrants took part in the protest, most of them from Pakistan and Bangladesh, a local police source said. Police made a dozen arrests.

The incident took place at the overcrowded Moria camp, one of five centres on Greek Aegean islands, which have borne the brunt of Europe's migrant crisis.

More than 15,000 migrants are being held on the Aegean islands, pending their return to Turkey under an EU-Turkish agreement reached in March this year.

Processing has been held up because the vast majority have filed for political asylum.

Part of Moria, which has a capacity for 3,500 people but currently houses more than 5,000, was badly damaged in a fire during clashes last month between migrants and police.

Nearly 66,000 refugees and migrants are currently stranded in Greece, according to official figures.

In Bulgaria meanwhile, some 300 Afghan migrants protested on Monday in the country's largest migrant reception centre, near the Turkish border, according to a human rights group.

‘They protested against the fact that they are being kept in Bulgaria against their will and demanded to be able to leave towards Serbia and then (western) Europe,’ said Iliana Savova, a spokeswoman for the Bulgarian Helsinki Committee for Human Rights, adding that around 300 migrants took part in the demonstration.

Bulgaria's interior ministry confirmed ‘tensions’ at the site, which is home to around 3,800 migrants -- around half of whom are Afghans.

Some 13,000 illegal migrants remain stranded inside Bulgaria, after other transit countries along the western Balkan route shut their borders earlier this year.

And close to 50 migrants ended a brief hunger strike Monday in an immigration detention centre in Barcelona, police said, just days after a riot took place in a similar facility in Madrid.

Comments
  • There are no comments.

Add Comments

B1Details

Latest News

SPORT

Canada's youngsters set stage for new era

Saying goodbye is never easy, especially when you are saying farewell to those that have left a positive impression. That was the case earlier this month when Canada hosted Mexico in a friendly at BC Place stadium in Vancouver.

1:43 PM February 26 2017
TECHNOLOGY

A payment plan for universal education

Some 60mn primary-school-age children have no access to formal education

11:46 AM December 14 2016
CULTURE

10-man Lekhwiya leave it late to draw Rayyan 2-2

Lekhwiya’s El Arabi scores the equaliser after Tresor is sent off; Tabata, al-Harazi score for QSL champions

7:10 AM November 26 2016
ARABIA

Yemeni minister hopes 48-hour truce will be maintained

The Yemeni Minister of Tourism, Dr Mohamed Abdul Majid Qubati, yesterday expressed hope that the 48-hour ceasefire in Yemen declared by the Command of Coalition Forces on Saturday will be maintained in order to lift the siege imposed on Taz City and ease the entry of humanitarian aid to the besieged

10:30 AM November 27 2016
ARABIA

QM initiative aims to educate society on arts and heritage

Some 200 teachers from schools across the country attended Qatar Museum’s (QM) first ever Teachers Council at the Museum of Islamic Art (MIA) yesterday.

10:55 PM November 27 2016
ARABIA

Qatar, Indonesia to boost judicial ties

The Supreme Judiciary Council (SJC) of Qatar and the Indonesian Supreme Court (SCI) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on judicial co-operation, it was announced yesterday.

10:30 AM November 28 2016
ECONOMY

Sri Lanka eyes Qatar LNG to fuel power plants in ‘clean energy shift’

Sri Lanka is keen on importing liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Qatar as part of government policy to shift to clean energy, Minister of City Planning and Water Supply Rauff Hakeem has said.

10:25 AM November 12 2016
B2Details
C7Details