Rocks hurled at police in ugly scenes at Turkish border
A GROUP of migrants have tried to bring down a fence in a bid to break through into Greece, while others hurled rocks at Greek police during ugly scenes at the border with Turkey.
Greek security personnel responded by firing volleys of tear gas at the youths.
At least two migrants were injured in the latest clash between Greek police and migrants gathered on the Turkish side of a border crossing near the Greek village of Kastanies.
As in previous confrontations this week, officers in Greece fired tear gas to stop the crowd, before
Turkish police fired tear gas back at their Greek counterparts.
Groups of mostly young men tied ropes to the fence and attempted to tear it down.
A Greek government official said the tear gas and water cannon were used for “deterrence” purposes.
Thousands of migrants have headed for Turkey’s land border with Greece after Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan said last week that migrants and refugees would no longer be prevented from crossing over to European Union territory.
Greece deployed riot police and border guards to repel people trying to enter the country from the sea or by land.
Mr Erdogan plans to be in Brussels today for a one-day working visit. The announcement came hours after EU foreign ministers meeting in Croatia on Friday criticised Turkey, saying it was using the migrants’ desperation for political purposes.
The Greek government said around 600 people, aided by Turkish army and military police, threw tear gas at the Greek side of the border overnight.
It also said there were several attempts to breach the border fence, and fires were lit in an attempt to damage the barrier.
The government statement said: “Attempts at illegal entry into Greek territory were prevented by Greek forces, which repaired the fence and used sirens and loudspeakers.”
Thousands of migrants have slept in makeshift camps near the border since the Turkish government said they were free to go, waiting for the opportunity to cut to Greece.
Mr Erdogan announced last week that Turkey, which already hosts more than 3.5 million Syrian refugees, would no longer be Europe’s gatekeeper and opened its European border.
The move alarmed EU states, which are still dealing with a wave of mass migration five years ago and the bloc insists it is abiding by a 2016 deal in which it gave Turkey billions in return for keeping asylum-seekers in Turkey.