When hundreds of refugees rushed the Macedonia border forces, the police reacted by spraying tear gas and used stun guns to control the mob, according to BBC News.
Macedonia deployed several hundred policemen and soldiers to secure their borders as refugees keep flooding through. Not just a few, but some 44,000 people have reportedly travelled through Macedonia in the past two months, meeting little border resistance, but razor wire has now been rolled across the frontier to prevent people from entering.
Five injured refugees were taken to a hospital on the Greek side of the border on Friday, Doctors Without Borders said, according to Al Jazeera. Witnesses said the border reopened around 4pm local time, after being closed overnight, and refugees were pouring through. More than 3,000 people had been waiting on the Greek side for the border to open.
According to BBC News, "Macedonian authorities are responding as if they were dealing with rioters rather than refugees who have fled conflict and persecution," Amnesty International Deputy Europe Director Gauri van Gulik said.
At least 10 people fainted and were treated by aid workers during the clash.
"We have to protect the border and allow entry to only a number of migrants to whom we can offer adequate, humane treatment," said Interior Ministry spokesman Ivo Kotevsky. "We are appealing to the EU and other countries to try and find a solution to the problem. It's a global problem." reports BBC News.
"There are terrible conditions here at the border. The government needs to take control of the situation." Alexandra Krause of the United Nations refugee agency said, according to Yahoo!
To say Macedonia is overwhelmed is an understatement. Hungary has begun erecting a fence to try to keep the distraught refugees out.
Macedonia appealed on Wednesday for neighboring countries to send train carriages to address the demands.
