Migrants
attack Macedonian police as construction of Greek border fence begins
Officers
retaliated with stun grenades and plastic bullets after unrest broke
out among 800 migrants waiting at the border to continue their
journey to northern Europe
Associated Press
Sunday 29 November
2015 01.08 GMT
Migrants on the
Greek-Macedonian border have attacked police with stones, enraged by
the sight of Macedonian authorities erecting a fence along the
border.
Authorities said 18
Macedonian officers were injured in the brief but intense clashes on
Saturday. Most of them received minor injuries but two were
hospitalised in the nearby town of Gevgelija, Macedonia’s interior
ministry said.
There was no
official tally of injured migrants, although Macedonian police
targeted them with stun grenades and plastic bullets. Doctors from
the Red Cross and other non-governmental organisations said they
treated 20 people for head injuries and breathing problems.
Tensions on the
border were compounded by the accidental electrocution of a
24-year-old Moroccan man at the top of a train carriage. The man
suffered severe burns, prompting anger among his compatriots, many of
whom have been stranded at the border since Macedonia decided earlier
this month, along with Serbia, Croatia and Slovenia, to let through
only those from the “warzone” countries of Afghanistan, Iraq and
Syria.
More than 600,000
refugees and other migrants from the Middle East, Africa and Asia
have entered Europe through Greece this year, many after making the
short sea crossing from Turkey. Most of them continue on a long trek
through the Balkans toward the promised lands of central and northern
Europe.
The 24-year-old is
in a serious condition, with extensive burns, Greek police said, and
has been transferred to a hospital in the city of Thessaloniki, 80
kilometres (50 miles) south of the border.
Migrants hurl
stones at Macedonian policemen during clashes as the migrants protest
against the building of a metal fence at the Greek-Macedonian border.
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Migrants hurl
stones at Macedonian policemen during clashes as the migrants protest
against the building of a metal fence at the Greek-Macedonian border.
Photograph: Milos Bicanski/Getty Images
Moroccan nationals
allegedly formed the bulk of the about 250 people who started
throwing stones at Macedonian police. Also among the 800 who are
stuck at the border are citizens of Algeria, Tunisia, Lebanon, Yemen,
Iran, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Somalia and Congo.
The clash ended in
less than an hour when other migrants intervened, holding white
clothing as a sign of peace.
Macedonian
government spokesman Aleksandar Gjorgjiev said that the country has
started to erect a fence on its southern border with Greece in order
to prevent illegal crossings and to channel the flow of migrants
through the official checkpoint.
Gjorgjiev said “the
border will remain open and all migrants from the war-affected zones
will be allowed to enter.”
The migrants are
camped along the railway tracks, blocking rail traffic for the 11th
consecutive day.
“I have been here
for 10 days with my two sons. We have decided to return to Athens and
see what we will do,” said 41-year-old Fatemeh, from the Iranian
city of Ahwaz. She declined to give her last name, for fear of
reprisals.
in our country.”
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