Demolition teams protected by French riot police are set to return Tuesday at the refugee camp named "jungle" in Calais after riots broke out Monday when the authorities went to strip down the temporary shelters in the area. Teargas was hurled by the police at the squatters after clashes broke out on Monday.
Police threw teargas at around 150 people who were reportedly pelting stones at them. The refugees have been told to evacuate the area and shift to another part of the camp where they will be made to live in shipping containers. They can also live in reception centres, of which there are 100 in France, the Guardian reported.
The refugees from the Middle East or African countries use Calais as a stopover town from where they can go on to the UK. On Jan. 21, around 100 refugees in Calais attempted to climb aboard trucks that where crossing the Eurotunnel, but were stopped by the French police. Many of them have tried to cross the English Channel by using lorries or trains to hide.
While local authorities said that of the 3,700 living in the area, 800 to 1,000 people will be affected by the current move, charities said that 3,450 people, including 300 children, live in the southern part of the camp alone.
On Monday, three members of a British activist group "No Borders" and one migrant were arrested for setting fire to 20 shelters at the camp, local government officials told the Guardian.
Meanwhile, UK President David Cameron is due to talk about the migrant crisis with French President Francois Hollande this week. On the agenda will be the issue of stemming the flow of migrants to the UK.
