Chios refugee center burned in riot
Authorities on the eastern Aegean island of Chios were working on Saturday to repair the damage wreaked to a refugee reception center after frustrated youths set fire to mattresses, causing a blaze that destroyed eight prefabricated homes.
Two Syrians were detained in connection with the blaze, which broke out following a dispute between migrants from different ethnic groups. The exact cause of the argument was unclear but tensions often bubble to the surface in refugee camps where migrants wait for months for asylum applications to be processed.
The government has indicated that migrants in overcrowded facilities on the Aegean islands will gradually be moved to centers on the mainland.
There is to be no mass relocation due to fears that people smugglers will subsequently use the move as an incentive to bring more migrants over to the islands, a source at the Citizens’ Protection Ministry told Kathimerini.
