Development Minister Adonis Georgiadis on Wednesday called for the immediate deportation of any residents of the Moria refugee and migrant camp who may have contributed to a fire that destroyed the facility earlier in the day.
“People who do not respect the Laws of the Hellenic Republic and who destroy public property do not deserve asylum in Greece,” Georgiadis said in a post on Twitter.
Georgiadis, who is also vice-president of the ruling conservative New Democracy party, was reacting to allegations that the fire was started by residents reacting to lockdown restrictions and measures imposed after 35 people tested positive for Covid-19.
“Everyone who participated in the unrest must be automatically deported,” Georgiadis tweeted.
An investigation is still under way to ascertain how the fire started.
The blaze has pushed thousands of residents of the overcrowded camp into the island’s streets after their shelters were razed and their possessions destroyed.
