Greek mainlanders protesting against relocation of migrants

Locals from mainland regions of Greece took to the streets over the weekend to protest against the transfer of migrants from Greek islands to towns in Northern Greece.

Numerous groups of protesters from various areas of the country are furious that migrants are now being transported from the Aegean to Macedonia, which started a few weeks back with residents of Vrasna refusing to allow around 400 migrants to settle in their area and were turned back and taken to Evia.

On Sunday, protesters from Giannitsa and Serres, two towns in Northern Greece, rallied against the transfer of migrants from Lesvos and Samos to sites around their homes.

"They should leave. We have had enough," a local from Giannitsa told Skai television as they tried to stop the migrants from settling in.

“Around 60 other migrants have already been brought to Giannitsa and we have had many problems," the local resident added.

In Serres, another protest was held against the arrival of around 30 migrants.

Over the weekend, roughly 900 people were transferred from Greek islands to sites on the mainland, and the government has said it wants to relocate 20,000 by the end of the year.

It is not only mainlanders who are protesting, as over the weekend there were also locals from Leros and Kos island who stopped migrants from getting off a boat and trying to make their way to the camps.