Moroccans, Iranians, Bangladeshis and Pakistanis barred from crossing the Greece-Macedonia border are protesting against a policy of prioritising Syrian refugees over migrants from other countries. One Iranian man declared a hunger strike and had his lips sewn together with nylon in front of lines of Macedonian riot police.
A man cries as he gets his mouth sewn up during a protest at the Greek-Macedonian borderOgnen Teofilovski/ReutersA man with his mouth sewn shut in protest sits at the border between Greece and MacedoniaOgnen Teofilovski/ReutersHamid, 34, an electrical engineer from the Iranian town of Sanandij, has his lips sewn up as he sits on rail tracks at the border between Greece and MacedoniaYannis Behrakis/Reuters
A close-up of an Iranian migrant's lips which have been sewn togetherYannis Behrakis/Reuters
Another Iranian man threatened to cut his wrists with a razor if not allowed into Macedonia. Police intervened to disarm him, but, in the scuffle, he cut his face.
A group of Bangladeshis stripped to the waist with slogans written on their chests in red paint. "Shoot us, we never go back," read one. "Shoot us or save us," read another.
Bangladeshi men protest at the Greek-Macedonian borderOgnen Teofilovski/ReutersMigrants and refugees from Iran gather on railway tracks as they demonstrate in front of Macedonian police while waiting to cross the Greek-Macedonian borderRobert Atanasovski/AFPMigrants and refugees hold a placard refering to the Paris attacks as they wait to cross the border between Greece and MacedoniaSakis Mitrolidis/AFPA man who injured himself with a razor is seen at the borderAlexandros Avramidis/Reuters
Conditions for the hundreds of people stuck on Balkan borders worsened as temperatures drop and a first smattering of snow fell.
Several European countries, including EU members Slovenia and Croatia and non-members Serbia and Macedonia, have declared they will only allow "war-zone refugees" from Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria to transit through their countries on their way to central and northern Europe. This policy has left many others stranded in northern Greece, demanding to be let in and chanting slogans such as "Freedom!" and "We are not terrorists."
Rights groups have questioned the policy, warning asylum should be granted on merit, not on the basis of nationality.
A man wrapped in a blanket waits to enter a refugee registration camp in MacedoniaOgnen Teofilovski/ReutersPeople warm themselves next to a bonfire as they wait to enter a registration camp after crossing the border from Greece in GevgelijaOgnen Teofilovski/ReutersChildren keep warm around a fire as they wait to enter a registration camp after crossing the Greek-Macedonian borderRobert Atanasovski/AFPMigrants and refugees carry a man who fainted as they were waiting to cross the border between Greece and MacedoniaSakis Mitrolidis/AFPA Red Cross worker assists a man who fainted as he was waiting along with other migrants and refugees to cross the Greek-Macedonian borderSakis Mitrolidis/AFPA young girl holding a stuffed animal crosses railway tracks in front of Macedonian police officersRobert Atanasovski/AFPWomen and children cross the Greek-Macedonian borderRobert Atanasovski/AFPAn amputee on crutches walks past a group of Macedonian police officers facing migrantsRobert Atanasovski/AFPA young girl holds a placard as migrants and refugees demonstrate while they wait to cross the Greek-Macedonian borderSakis Mitrolidis/AFPMacedonian policemen help a man in a wheelchair traverse a railway track after crossing the Greek-Macedonian borderRobert Atanasovski/AFPA girl sitting on the railway tracks is pictured between the legs of Macedonian policemenRobert Atanasovski/AFPA man holds a wooden cross as migrants and refugees demonstrate in front of Macedonian policemenRobert Atanasovski/AFPA man calls for help after another man fainted while waiting to cross the borderAlexandros Avramidis/ReutersA man holds a poster as he waits to cross the Greek-Macedonian borderOgnen Teofilovski/ReutersWomen carrying babies wait to cross the border from Greece to MacedoniaOgnen Teofilovski/ReutersA Kurdish man shows his tattoo during a demonstration in front of Macedonian policeOgnen Teofilovski/ReutersMacedonian police check people's papers as they wait to cross the border from GreeceOgnen Teofilovski/ReutersPeople try to stop a man from attempting to hang himself during a demonstration near Gevgelija, MacedoniaOgnen Teofilovski/ReutersA woman cries as she waits to cross the border from Greece into MacedoniaOgnen Teofilovski/Reuters
The new measure coincides with rising concerns, particularly among the political right in Europe, over the security risk of the chaotic and often unchecked flow of people into Europe in the aftermath of the attacks in Paris on 13 November by Islamist militants, in which 130 people died. It has emerged that two suicide bombers involved in the attacks may have taken the same route, arriving by boat in Greece and then traveling north across the Balkans. Most of the attackers, however, were citizens of France or Belgium.
