Hundreds of people were injured during violent clashes between Muslim refugees on 19 December, at the Moria refugee camp on the Greek island of Lesvos.
According to Twitter and Facebook reports from some of the 5,500 refugees and asylum seekers placed on the island, clashes erupted between Arab, Afghan and Iraqi refugees.
Some of the rioters burned down tents and then prevented fire and other emergency services from entering the camp. To bring some calm into the situation, riot police were called in from the mainland who used teargas to quell the clashes. Major media groups in Greece described the riot as a ‘war zone situation’.
Christians bullied
Most Christians escape the island as soon as they can due to bullying, harassment and attempts to forcibly convert them to Islam. However, when they escape they find that neither the Greek authorities nor the UNHCR are willing to help them, unless they are willing to return to Moria camp, which is a terrifying prospect as the island holds the same type of Islamists that the Christians have tried to flee.
One Pakistani refugee told how when he arrived at Moria camp he was bullied by other asylum seekers and asked to convert to Islam. He realised that Christians were a tiny minority in the camp. When he refused to accept Islam he found the bitterness towards him and his friends worsened. They began to live on the fringes of the camp, finding shelter where they could away from the tented areas.
Services cause offence
Other Christians report the offence caused to Muslims in the camp because of their Christian prayers and services, which they began to hold in secret to avoid retribution. The daily threats received by Christians in the camp meant that their morale was at its lowest ebb.
