The last makeshift structures of the former migrant camp known as the “Jungle” near the northern French port city of Calais were razed yesterday, regional authorities said.
The announcement brought a week-long operation to demolish the camp to an end, after authorities had spent the first half of last week evacuating more than 6,000 people to some 450 accommodation centres throughout France.
Following the evacuation, demolition crews moved in to level the makeshift structures that were built from tarpaulins and scrap wood and had comprised a miniature slum near the industrial zone of Calais for more than a year.
Regional authorities said that the operation to clear makeshift huts at the camp finished at 6pm.
Three places of worship had been left intact, because approximately 1,500 minors are still living in a container centre that abuts the camp, the said.
Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve has rejected concerns that the Calais evacuation prompted some migrants to travel to Paris, saying that those living in the “Jungle” had been transported to centres around France to apply for asylum.
In Paris yesterday, a police operation to check migrants’ documents created tension after French Prime Minister Manuel Valls said last week that the camp – near the metro station Stalingrad – would also be cleared.