Migrants on Greece's Lesvos island protest against returns to Turkey

Dozens of migrants stranded on the Greek island of Lesvos in the Aegean Sea carried out a sit in protest on Tuesday against deportations to Turkey a day after the first 200 people were shipped to Dikili port under the recent European Union (EU)-Turkey deal to curb the influx into Europe.

About 100 people, mainly from Pakistan and Bangladesh, demonstrated inside the Moria hotspot near the Mytilene port from where the readmissions started on Monday, Greek national news agency AMNA reported.

The Moria reception center currently accommodates more than 3,000 refugees and migrants, according to official figures.

Demonstrators were requesting to be set free to continue their journey to central and northern Europe and not be sent back to Turkey.

Under the EU-Turkey agreement all migrants and refugees who landed on Greek shores after March 20 and are not eligible for asylum in Greece or will not submit asylum requests in Greece, will be returned to Turkey.

After Monday's first deportations, the overwhelming majority of the 4,500 migrants in the Greek islands hotspots have submitted asylum requests in a bid to delay their readmissions, according to AMNA.

Greek officials have said that the goal is to process asylum applications within two weeks, but due to shortage of personnel there was concern that the procedures would drag on for longer periods.

According to the initial schedule, some 700 refugees would be escorted to Turkey by European border control agency Frontex officers until April 7.

The Greek side has not yet specified when the next returns will take place.

AMNA reported on Tuesday citing Turkish sources that a second batch of people may be returned to Turkey on Friday.
   [Xinhua - globaltimes.cn]
6/4/16