Fire and clashes in Moria camp on the Greek island of Lesbos
A fire broke out in the Moria camp on the Greek island of Lesbos, triggering clashes between police and refugees. The UN refugee agency in Greece said a child and a woman had died in the clashes.
Greek police have confirmed that at least one person has been killed in clashes between refugees and police, but the UN refugee agency in Greece has put the death toll at two.
The UN refugee agency confirmed in a tweet that a child and a woman had died in the fire and clashes at the Moria camp.
A spokesman for the Greek Ministry of Health has also said that the number of victims is likely to reach three.
According to police, the first fire broke out outside the Moria camp in the Olive Garden at 5:00 p.m. local time. But the flames spread into the camp shortly after.
A Greek police spokesman told AFP that the residents of the camp were the cause of both fires. They were demanding to be moved from the island of Lesbos to the interior of Greece, according to the Greek police spokesman. The Greek police official noted that both fires have since been contained.
Police also say that there was a clash between refugees and police after the fire spread to the residential area of the camp.
Currently, the camp residents are planning to occupy the repatriation section of the camp. The situation is not yet fully under control and local authorities have requested a greater police presence.
Images and videos posted on social media show a large cloud of smoke filling the sky above the camp.
Arash Hampay, a refugee and homeless rights activist in Greece, posted a video of a fire inside the camp on his Twitter account, reporting on the delay of the fire department and the police's escape, "at the behest of the refugees."
The Moria camp on the Greek island of Lesbos is more like a prison with high security measures and minimal amenities: high walls, long rows of barbed wire, a watchtower, and a large number of police and security forces.
Inside the camp, refugees are forced to live in tents without heating and use dirty washrooms and toilets. Outside the camp, refugees are also wandering around, deprived of even these “facilities.”
The Moria camp has a capacity of 3,000 refugees, but more than 12,000 people have been accommodated there.
Source: DW
