"French authorities have evacuated a camp in a disused warehouse in Calais where hundreds of migrants had been sheltering. The site, nicknamed "Cheers", had housed up to 600 people in what the regional prefecture described as "degrading and dangerous conditions". The operation took place in the morning "calmly and without incident", the Pas-de-Calais prefecture said in a statement. It said the site had become "a hub for smuggling networks exploiting the vulnerability of migrants"."
"Hundreds of migrants had taken shelter in the warehouse, living in cramped, dark and damp conditions amid piles of waste, AFP observed during a visit in January. Migrants had occupied the camp nearly a year ago. State agencies conducted visits in September to offer the camp's residents shelter in regional reception centres and 170 took up the offer ahead of the camp clearance, the prefecture said."
French authorities evacuated a disused Calais warehouse that had sheltered up to 600 migrants in cramped, dark, damp conditions. The regional prefecture described the site as degrading and dangerous and said it had become a hub for smuggling networks exploiting migrants' vulnerability. The morning operation was carried out calmly and without incident, according to the Pas-de-Calais prefecture. State agencies previously offered shelter in regional reception centres, with 170 migrants accepting the offer. Property owners sealed access and the city will install boulders to stop reoccupation. Aid groups criticise repeated clearances for forcing constant displacement.
Read at The Local France
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]