Some 3,000 to 4,000 migrants have been evacuated from the Moria camp on the Greek island of Lesbos after a large fire destroyed tents and prefabricated homes.
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He said his team had witnesses multiple fights between migrants at the Moria camp which led to “dozens” of injuries.
Despite a slowdown in arrivals from Turkey compared to a year ago, more than 13,500 migrants and refugees are now living on eastern Aegean islands, almost double a capacity of 7,450.
“There is a big fire at the hot spot [migrant camp]”.
Many people had returned, though children had been transferred to other facilities, police said.
The cause of the fire was not known last night. According to the Greek state-news agency ANA, fights started in the camp on Monday after rumors of mass deportations to Turkey.
Refugees walk past burned tents at the Moria camp on the Greek island of Lesbos after the overnight fire that burned more than half of the camp.
More than 4,000 people were housed at the camp at Moria on Lesbos where fire which broke out late Monday destroyed or damaged tents and trailers.
According to government data, there are more than 13,000 people on five islands in facilities built to house fewer than 8,000.
He said there was “no doubt” that the fire had been set on objective by those inside the camp, where brawls regularly break out among migrants, angry at long processing delays and the possibility of being sent home. “There is an immediate need to take people off the islands because things will get even more hard”, she said.
A ministerial source said the camp would be rebuilt as soon as possible but in the meantime authorities were placing families in another camp on Lesbos, where there are in excess of 5,600 people, over 2,000 above nominal capacity.
Migrants on Lesbos have been stranded by a European Union deal with Turkey, which prevents them from leaving the island until their asylum claims have been processed and promises to deport those who do not qualify.
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Some 300 migrants living in the camp attempted to rally against those protesters, but were subsequently rounded up by police and escorted back to the camp.
