Refugees have been camping on a road close to the border crossing that connects Greece to Macedonia in protest against the closure of the Macedonia railway station. The station is a key element in their journey, which has been used by at least 500,000 refugees since August 2015, as it allows them access to the Balkan Peninsula, a stopover for those who are trying to reach Western European countries.

Greek Macedonia border
Men gesture near a line of Greek police officers while others block the road Bulent Kilic/AFP

Hundreds of cars travelling on the roads were unable to pass through, with many protesters using sticks and rocks to prevent motorists from doing so. Greek riot police confronted those who were obstructing the cars, forming a human shield between the desperate refugees and angry motorists to avoid aggravation from either parties. Reuters reported that a female motorist, who had tried to break through the blockage, suffered a heart attack when her car was stopped and hit by several people.

Greek Macedonia border
A Greek woman speaks to refugees as they block a road in the northern Greek border village of Idomeni Bulent Kilic/AFP
Greek Macedonia border
Men place rocks and sticks across the road to stop vehicles from passing through in the northern Greek border village of Idomeni Bulent Kilic/AFP
Greek Macedonia border
A woman stands near a line of Greek police officers as refugees block a road in the northern Greek border village of Idomeni Bulent Kilic/AFP

Refugees have been blocking hundreds of vehicles since 4 April. This comes after the controversial agreement that was made between the EU and Ankara to ship refugees from Greece back to Turkey. The deportations have since been suspended, a day after the first batch of people was sent back from the islands of Lesbos and Chios.

"We protest against deportation. We risked our lives to get here by sea. Returning to Turkey means we will lose everything and be facing many security problems," Ahmed, a Syrian refugee who was protesting on the road, explained to Reuters.

There are some 12,000 refugees who are currently stranded on the Greek side of the Greece-Macedonia border, occupying a make-shift camp in Idomeni, a village close by. Yet conditions in the camp are worsening, and the United Nations Refugee Agency, known as UNHCR, claims the camp does not meet humanitarian standards with many living in tents with limited resources, while others have transformed abandoned train carriages into homes.

Greek Macedonia border
A local woman delayed by refugees blocking the road shouts at a Greek police officer   Bulent Kilic/AFP
Greek Macedonia border
A girl stands on railway tracks at the makeshift camp Bulent Kilic/AFP
Greek Macedonia border
A boy plays with a balloon at the makeshift camp of the Greek-Macedonian border near the Greek village of Idomeni Bulent Kilic/AFP
Greek Macedonia border
A boy looks on as women and children wait for food distribution in the Idomeni camp Bulent Kilic/AFP
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Children wait at a food distribution in the makeshift camp of Idomeni Bulent Kilic/AFP
Greek Macedonia border
A man and his toddler rest next to their tent at the makeshift camp at the Greek-Macedonian border village of Idomeni Bulent Kilic/AFP
Greek Macedonia border
Girls sit on a car wreck at the makeshift camp of the Greek-Macedonian border near the Greek village of Idomeni Bulent Kilic/AFP
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A man stands next to a car at the makeshift camp of the Greek-Macedonian border Bulent Kilic/AFP
Greek Macedonia border
A man walks through part of the makeshift camp at the Greek-Macedonian border village of Idomeni Bulent Kilic/AFP
Greek Macedonia border
Hands reach out to grab food and clothes at the makeshift camp at the Greek-Macedonian border village of Idomeni Bulent Kilic/AFP
Greek Macedonia border
A girl fights to get clothes at the makeshift camp at the Greek-Macedonian border village of Idomeni Bulent Kilic/AFP
Greek Macedonia border
A boy sits on a man's shoulders at the makeshift camp in the border village of Idomeni Bulent Kilic/AFP
Greek Macedonia border
A woman goes with her children to receive food Bulent Kilic/AFP
Greek Macedonia border
A girl looks on as she waits for a food at a distribution post at the makeshift camp Bulent Kilic/AFP
Greek Macedonia border
People try to grab clothes at their makeshift camp at the Greek-Macedonian border village of Idomeni Bulent Kilic/AFP
Greek Macedonia border
A Syrian man and his son look out from a train window where they live near a makeshift camp in Idomeni Bulent Kilic/AFP
Greek Macedonia border
A mother washes her daughter's hair at a makeshift camp in Idomeni Bulent Kilic/AFP
Greek Macedonia border
A boy sits next to a fire by the Balkan border blockade, near the village of Idomeni Bulent Kilic/AFP
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