Over 400 Unaccompanied Migrant Children Evacuated From Blaze-Hit Lesbos Camp - Athens

ATHENS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 10th September, 2020) The transportation of 406 unaccompanied refugee children from the Moria migrant camp on the Greek island of Lesbos after the reception facility was destroyed in a large blaze has been completed with the help of the national Migration Ministry and the International Organization for Migration, the Greek prime minister's office said on Thursday.

A huge blaze destroyed the overcrowded Moria facility in the early hours of Wednesday, leaving nearly 13,000 migrants without shelter. According to Greek media, the fire could have been caused by arson. The fire broke out after reports emerged that 35 residents of the camp had been diagnosed with COVID-19.

"At the first stage, the minors were taken away from the scene of the fire and transported to safe places, where they were provided with shelter, food and care. A coordinated operation was then organized to fly three specially chartered flights from Wednesday evening to Thursday morning from Lesbos," the office said.

According to Athens, children have been transferred to safe accommodation facilities in northern Greece, where they will stay until they are relocated under the EU resettlement program.

Over 800 minors from the camp have already been relocated across the EU member states.