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Greek islanders block Syrian migrant boat from landing

TOP NEWS

AFP
AFP
Agence France-Presse

SKÁLA SYKAMINÉAS: A group of local people on the Greek island of Lesbos on Sunday stopped around 50 migrants, including children, from landing their boat after several hours at sea, AFP photographers witnessed.

Shouting “Go back to Turkey”, furious locals at the port of Thermi blocked the boats.

After Turkey’s decision to open its borders into Europe, migrants have been arriving in greater numbers on the Greek islands in the Aegean, just off the Turkish coast.

The locals also shouted insults at the local official of the UN refugee agency the UNHCR — and some also attacked journalists and photographers at the scene, hitting them and throwing cameras into the water.

On the road to the overcrowded Moira camp on the island, another group of local people used chains and rocks to try to block the route of a police bus transporting migrants who had arrived Sunday, the Greek news agency ANA reported.

Shouting “Go back to Turkey”, furious locals at the port of Thermi blocked migrants from landing.

A police officer was slightly injured in the incident.

More than 19,000 are already staying at the camp, which was built to hold fewer than 3,000.

Around 500 migrants landed Sunday morning in around 10 vessels, according to an AFP tally, their crossing made easier by the good weather conditions.

Another four vessels carrying 120 people landed on the neighbouring island of Chios, and two vessels carrying 80 migrants landed on Samos, further to the south, ANA reported.

According to the Greek coastguard, around 180 migrants arrived Saturday on Lesbos and Samos, making the crossing from Turkey despite strong winds.

Last week, hundreds of local people on Lesbos protested against government plans to build a new migrant camp, clashing with riot police sent to the island to protect construction workers.

Greek government

The Greek government has been sending texts to migrants arriving at its northern border warning them not to attempt to cross it as it has increased its border security to the maximum level, a government source said on Sunday.

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis called a meeting of the country’s national security council for early Sunday evening as migrants headed to the Greek borders after Turkey relaxed restrictions.

Greek police action

Greek police fired tear gas to repel hundreds of stone-throwing migrants who sought to force their way across the border from Turkey on Sunday, witnesses said, with thousands more behind them after Ankara relaxed curbs on their movement.

It was the second straight day of clashes at the border crossing by the northeastern Greek town of Kastanies in which police drove back approaching migrants with volleys of tear gas.

Greece had placed its borders on maximum-security footing earlier on Sunday after hundreds of other migrants used porous crossing points to enter the country.

At least 500 people had arrived by sea on the Greek islands of Lesbos, Chios and Samos close to the Turkish coast within a few hours on Sunday morning, police said.

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