A rumor claiming that seven irregular migrants died while trying to clandestinely travel towards to the Greek mainland from the eastern Aegean island of Lesvos inside a truck trailer loaded onto a ferry boat – which proved to be false – was enough to generate a small-scale riot by third country nationals being temporarily housed in a “hot spot” on the isle.
Around 200 irregular migrants, young men and teens from Pakistan and North African countries, fled the Moria camp just before midnight on Friday and protested through nearby streets. Two vehicles belonging to employees of the camp were destroyed during the rioting.
A march by the irregular migrants nearly reached the island capital of Mytilene at 2 a.m., where an alleged rally was to be held. When the prospect fizzled, the group headed back to the “hot spot”.
Tens of thousands of Third World nationals, from Morocco to Bangladesh and beyond, took advantage of a massive wave of Mideast war refugees that landed on Greek islands over the past year and a half from neighboring Turkey in order to reach preferred destinations in Europe, especially Germany.
What began as a refugee crisis subsequently also became an illegal migration crisis, with national governments along the so-called “Balkan route” securing borders in a bid to stop the flow.
