MIGRANT CHAOS: Furious refugees throw ROCKS at police in violent protest against EU deal
FURIOUS migrants threw rocks and pieces of metal at Greek police as tensions boiled over on the island of Lesbos yesterday.
Refugees protested against the EU's deal with Turkey at the Moria detention camp
The refugees also set bins on fire at the Moria detention camp, which Pope Francis visited earlier this month.
The violent clashes broke out just hours after two ferries shipped migrants back to Turkey under a controversial EU deal.
Police said the protest was over "detention conditions" in the camp – which holds around 3,000 people – and "the returns to Turkey".
Yesterday ferries carrying 49 migrants from Lesbos, Kos and Chios reached the Turkish port towns of Gulluk, Cesme and Dikili.
Most were from Afghanistan and Pakistan and none had requested asylum in Greece, a government official said.
As part of the deal, some refugee camps on the eastern Aegean Greek islands have been turned into detention centres.
Pope Francis met migrants during a visit to the camp earlier this month
Many of these refugees have been for well over a month
Panos Navrozidis of the International Rescue Committee said: "Events at Moria highlight the level of frustration there.
"Many of these refugees have been held at Moria for well over a month with inadequate services available to them and very few answers.
"They deserve much better."
More than one million refugees reached European last year, according to the UN
Just over 340 migrants have so far been returned to Turkey under Brussels' deal with Ankara, which came into effect on April 4.
The move is intended to stem the human influx into Europe amid the worst refugee crisis since the Second World War.
More than one million people fleeing war and poverty in the Middle East and beyond reached the continent last year.