Bulgaria’s furious prime minister ordered officials to begin the mass deportation of hundreds of migrants who went on the rampage and trashed their camp.
Fuming Boiko Borisov vowed all migrants involved in the violent disturbance will be “brought to justice” with many being deported back to their home countries.
Riot police had to storm the camp using water cannon and rubber bullets to restore order at the camp on the border with Turkey, with 24 officers being injured in the operation.
Shocking photographs of the burning rubble of the camp showed gangs of young men milling around in hoodies. Most are from Afghanistan, according to officials.
Witnesses said the scene “looked like a war zone” after rampaging refugees smashed windows, overturned trash containers and set fires.
Those who are not sent back to the Middle East will be dispersed to migrant camps across the country in a bid to prevent them from organizing another violent uprising.
Mr. Borisov raged:
“I am very worried. You see there is no window left unbroken. The people who committed these acts of vandalism will be brought to justice.
Based on an agreement between the European Union and Afghanistan we have asked for a plane to start extraditing people there in early December. As for the rest, all who have acted brutally and violated public order will be moved to closed camps.”
More than 400 asylum seekers had been confined in a part of the camp after rumors rippled through a nearby town that many of them had a serious and highly contagious skin condition. It is home to around 3,000 migrants overall, making it the largest in Bulgaria.
H/T: Express