Island of Lesbos (Greece) (AFP)

The Greek government has extended for the fourth time the confinement of migrants in Greek camps "with the excuse of public health", lambasted Marco Sandrone, MSF coordinator at Lesvos camp on Monday, deeming this "extremely dangerous rhetoric" for the migrant population.

"We can no longer remain silent: the reason for the confinement (of the camps) cannot be associated with public health," the MSF spokesperson told AFP.

"There have been no positive cases" of coronavirus in Moria camp in Lesbos, added Sandrone.

"The people in the camps do not represent a threat" but are on the contrary "a population at risk which must be evacuated from the camp", according to him, as quickly as possible, rather than continuing to confine them "with the excuse and the justification of public health ".

In addition, "the threat comes from outside", particularly with the new arrivals from Turkey. "Without an effective long-term response (...) the risk is to import positive cases into Moria camp," said the MSF coordinator.

An Afghan refugee, Nasrin Hassani, 8 months pregnant, told AFP to "pray that the virus will not enter" the camp.

"If only one person gets the virus here, you can be sure that the whole camp will die because there are not enough doctors, there is not enough equipment to monitor anything," a added this asylum seeker housed for 8 months in Moria.

The Greek government announced on Saturday that it was again extending the confinement of the country's camps until July 5.

He had already extended it three times on May 10, May 21 and June 7.

Authorities imposed these movement restrictions on March 21 on migrants living on the Aegean islands as well as those on the mainland. They then decided on general confinement on March 23 which was maintained until May 4.

With 190 deaths from the coronavirus, Greece was less affected than its European partners by the pandemic. Among the migrants, no deaths from Covid-19 disease have been recorded and only a few dozen cases have been reported, according to the authorities.

More than 33,000 asylum seekers live in five camps on the Aegean islands, with a capacity for only 5,400 people, and some 70,000 in other facilities on the continent.

© 2020 AFP