Palestinians among Hundreds of Displaced Migrants Appealing for Decent Shelter following Wildfire in Greek Camp  

Palestinians among Hundreds of Displaced Migrants Appealing for Decent Shelter following Wildfire in Greek Camp  

Firefighters try to extinguish a blaze in an overcrowded camp for asylum seekers on the Greek island of Samos on late Monday, October 14, 2019 | Photo: Picture-alliance/AP Photo/Michael Svarnias

Migrants taking shelter in Vathy camp, set up on the Greek island of Samos, have urged the local authorities and international humanitarian organizations to provide them with safe shelters after a fire tore through the camp last week and destroyed most of the residential facilities in the area.

At least 200 migrants and refugees have been left homeless after a fire rocked the camp on the Greek island of Samos, according to a migration ministry official.

"Around 200 people have been left homeless," Migration Ministry Secretary Manos Logothetis told AFP news agency shortly after the incident.

Riot squads were sent to quell the unrest and seven people were detained, he said. There were no immediate reports of injuries.

Stefan Cordes, a field coordinator on Samos with the Doctors Without Borders (MSF), confirmed the account of the incidents to Al Jazeera, putting the number of those left without shelter after the two fires at about 500.

He accused the government and the European Union of failing to take care of the migrants whose living conditions are believed to be the cause of the violence.

"They don't have access to hygiene, water or good food," Cordes told Al Jazeera. "This makes their lives really difficult. The government and the European Union don't take care of these people, who are here for a long time.”

"We have to really consider that about 500 people are without shelter now and the authorities have to take care of these people and provide a space where these people can be safe", he said.

The Samos camp is massively overcrowded, with nearly 7,000 people in a facility built to handle fewer than 650.

The Greek government had planned to relocate to the mainland more than 2,300 asylum seekers from island camps - including many elderly and ailing persons - but the operation has been delayed owing to fears of coronavirus.

The Action Group for Palestinians of Syria said some 256 Palestinian refugees taking shelter in Vathy camp have been facing squalid living conditions due to overcrowding and poor hygiene.

Palestinian refugees continue to risk their lives onboard the “death boats” to Greece, rummaging around for a momentary respite from the daily scenes of destruction, displacement, and economic hardship. Several refugees have died at sea.

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