Refugee hit by police car in Greek camp dies
A Syrian refugee, who was hit by a police car at Idomeni camp on the Greece-Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) border sparking riots, died of his injuries, hospital officials confirmed Saturday.
The 40-year-old Kurd, who had been living with his family for more than two months at the squalid camp, died of head injuries on Thursday, the officials said.
According to the Greek police, the man was injured after falling from a scaffolding outside his tent “onto the side of a passing police car”.
The incident sparked riots Monday in the camp, where a group of migrants stoning a police van, accusing the police of having deliberately run the man over.
The Greek police used tear gas to disperse the crowd.
Tensions are running high at the makeshift camp, where over 10,000 people have been stranded since Balkan states closed their borders to them several weeks ago, preventing them continuing their journey to northern Europe.
Late on Friday night, scuffles erupted between Afghans and Pakistanis near the camp. Four Pakistanis were treated for minor injuries.
The flow of migrants across the Aegean Sea into Greece has slowed significantly since a deal between the EU and Turkey to send irregular migrants back across the water came into effect last month.
According to official numbers, only 53 migrants have reached the Greek Aegean islands from Turkey in the last 48 hours.
Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras on Friday urged NATO to expand its anti-trafficking naval force in the Aegean, despite Turkish objections.
[AFP]
