Refugee Border Clash in Macedonia Intensifies

Large clashes with Macedonian police over attempted border crossings occurred on April 10. According to Reuters, police action, which included stun grenades, tear gas, and rubber bullets, resulted in the injury of over 300 migrants. According to Deutsche Welle, many refugees allegedly attempted to cross in response to flyers in Arabic distributed by activists.  The flyers incorrectly stated that the borders had been reopened.

50,000 refugees are trapped in Greece and approximately 11,000 in the migrant camp at Idomini alone; border closures have prevented them from continuing their journeys to northwestern Europe. Greek government spokesman George Kyritsis criticized the Macedonian response, saying, “[t]he indiscriminate use of chemicals, rubber bullets, and stun grenades against vulnerable populations ... is a dangerous and deplorable act.”

Apart from the events in Macedonia, tensions regarding refugee influx continue to escalate: Austria and Italy met on Friday to discuss concerns over Austria’s desire to regulate or even close parts of its borders in response to the crisis, limiting passage into the Schengen free zone. Beyond the traditional haven of Germany, refugee flows have also significantly affected Nordic Europe. Some claim that Russia and the Federal Security Service (FSB) monitor and maintain a flow of migrants through Russia and into Finland as a sort of political tool. Others, including Politico, see Russia as trying to destabilize Europe through frozen geopolitical conflict in Syria and creating the recent clashes we have seen in Macedonia.