Protests mount at Macedonia’s fence with Greece

The violence broke out after one migrant, believed to be Moroccan, suffered an electric shock and was badly burned when he climbed on top of a train wagon on the Greek-Macedonian border.

Macedonia has become the latest country to restrict the flow of migrants entering the country, erecting a fence on its border with Greece. He was taken away for treatment in a Red Cross ambulance.

There was no official tally of injured migrants, although Macedonian police targeted them with stun grenades and plastic bullets.

The interior ministry later said that 18 policemen were injured, two of whom were hospitalised after the incident.

An AFP photographer earlier saw soldiers using heavy machinery to build a barrier near Gevgelija, on the main road north from the Greek city of Thessaloniki to Macedonia’s capital Skopje.

Many of those refused entry to Macedonia from Greece are from Iran, Pakistan and Morocco. He said that the crossing from Greece to non-EU member Macedonia would remain open and that the fence was aimed at ensuring migrants did not try to slip across at other spots.

Greek police said the move has led to some 800 migrants of other nationalities being stranded in Greece at the Macedonian border.

The surge comes despite ongoing protests at the Greek-Macedonian border.

More than 720,000 people have arrived in Europe through Greece alone this year, according to the IOM, with just over half declaring themselves Syrian citizens. This group includes people fleeing war-torn countries such as Syria, who are likely to be granted refugee status, as well as people who are seeking jobs and better lives, who governments are likely to rule are economic migrants. The source said the decision came after they were informed by Croatia and Serbia that migrants who were not from war zones would be returned.