Greek police deployed to end riot at migrant detention camp

Greek police have been deployed to the country’s main migration detention camp to end an unrest, in which living quarters were set on fire and stones thrown at officers.

A police spokesman said riot police were dispatched Saturday to the Amygdaleza camp, located north of the capital Athens, after mattresses were set on fire and other objects were thrown towards guards, injuring ten officers.

According to the spokesman, whose name was not mentioned in the report, the riot began after authorities told the detainees that their maximum stay in the camp would be extended from one year to 18 months.

Conditions at detention camps in Greece have come under fire by rights groups, as there have been cases of police abuse and migrants being denied proper healthcare.

Last week, rights group United Against Racism and Fascist Threat (KEERFA) reported that guards had beaten Muslim detainees during prayers.

In addition, KEERFA reported last month the death of a detainee, who died from a pulmonary infection, which guards had allegedly ignored for months.

Meanwhile, the Greek government has also been criticized by both the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and the European Commission on Human Rights (ECHR) for not responding to the increasing number of violent racist attacks against foreigners and immigrants.

Analysts have linked the rise of racist violence to the increase of popularity for the ultra-rightist group, Golden Dawn, which holds 18 seats in the 300-seat parliament.

The ECHR has described Golden Dawn as a “neo-Nazi and violent political party” that should be secluded under legally binding international human rights conventions signed by Greece.

The party has gained support from a rise in social tension due to the country’s financial crisis as well as experiencing four years of strict austerity policies demanded by Greece’s international lenders in return for bailout funding.