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Clashes at northern Greece migrant facility lead to escape and injuries

Authorities recaptured 17 of 35 people who breached a perimeter fence following unrest at an asylum accommodation center in Sintiki.

The short version

  • Unrest broke out late Saturday at the Sintiki temporary accommodation center near the Bulgarian border, with residents throwing rocks and police deploying flash grenades.
  • Thirty-five migrants breached the perimeter fence to escape; police subsequently recaptured 17 while five injured individuals were hospitalized.
  • Law enforcement continues search operations for approximately 18 people who remain at large.

Key facts

  • Migrants clashed with police and breached a perimeter fence at a temporary accommodation center in Sintiki, northern Greece, near the Bulgarian border.[Associated Press · ABC News]
  • The Sintiki facility currently houses approximately 450 individuals awaiting asylum application processing.[Associated Press · ABC News]
  • According to police, reinforcements were dispatched after residents threw rocks at facility guards, and special forces deployed flash grenades during clashes that lasted until early Sunday.[Associated Press · ABC News]
  • A total of 35 people escaped the facility, of whom 17 were arrested while around 18 remain sought by authorities.[Associated Press · ABC News]
  • Five migrants were injured during the incident and transported to a hospital.[Associated Press · ABC News]

What remains uncertain

  • The exact whereabouts of the approximately 18 migrants who evaded recapture remain unknown as search operations proceed.[Associated Press · ABC News]

Sources