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| Refugees forced to scramble for food by police in Hungary | Refugees forced to scramble for food by police in Hungary |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Hungarian police have launched an investigation after a video showed a crowd of refugees clamouring for food at a reception centre as police in surgical masks threw out packs of sandwiches. | Hungarian police have launched an investigation after a video showed a crowd of refugees clamouring for food at a reception centre as police in surgical masks threw out packs of sandwiches. |
| The footage is said to have been taken at a refugee camp in Röszke on Hungary’s border with Serbia, where tens of thousands of refugees have gathered, hoping to reach countries in the EU. | The footage is said to have been taken at a refugee camp in Röszke on Hungary’s border with Serbia, where tens of thousands of refugees have gathered, hoping to reach countries in the EU. |
| The video was posted on the YouTube channel of the Austrian politician Alexander Spritzendorfer, and supposedly taken by his wife, Michaela Spritzendorfer-Ehrenhauser. | The video was posted on the YouTube channel of the Austrian politician Alexander Spritzendorfer, and supposedly taken by his wife, Michaela Spritzendorfer-Ehrenhauser. |
| Related: Syrian refugees in Hungary: 'This is the so-called developed Europe?' | |
| In response to questions from Reuters, police said they had launched an emergency inquiry into the video. | In response to questions from Reuters, police said they had launched an emergency inquiry into the video. |
| Zoltán Kovács, a spokesman for the Hungarian government, said the footage showed a detention centre where people spend only a few hours in an “optimal case”, but can also remain there for up to two days in a procedure sanctioned by the EU. | Zoltán Kovács, a spokesman for the Hungarian government, said the footage showed a detention centre where people spend only a few hours in an “optimal case”, but can also remain there for up to two days in a procedure sanctioned by the EU. |
| He said: “I can see policemen who have been performing their duties for months, trying to take care of 23,000 migrants arriving continuously day by day, while there is no cooperation whatsoever on their part. I can see they are trying to maintain order among those who are unable to line up for food.” | He said: “I can see policemen who have been performing their duties for months, trying to take care of 23,000 migrants arriving continuously day by day, while there is no cooperation whatsoever on their part. I can see they are trying to maintain order among those who are unable to line up for food.” |
| There have been growing signs of Hungary’s inability to handle the arrival of more than 170,000 people this year, seeking sanctuary in Europe from war and poverty in the Middle East and Africa. | There have been growing signs of Hungary’s inability to handle the arrival of more than 170,000 people this year, seeking sanctuary in Europe from war and poverty in the Middle East and Africa. |
| On Thursday alone, police recorded 3,601 refugees on the border, according to official data. | On Thursday alone, police recorded 3,601 refugees on the border, according to official data. |
| Those stranded at the border have waited days to be registered, while conditions at makeshift frontier camps are basic. Medical care for the crowds at Budapest’s railway stations has been provided entirely by volunteers. | Those stranded at the border have waited days to be registered, while conditions at makeshift frontier camps are basic. Medical care for the crowds at Budapest’s railway stations has been provided entirely by volunteers. |
| Spritzendorfer-Ehrenhauser, who works for the Catholic diocese of Sankt Pölten, said she took the footage while delivering sanitary supplies to the camp with the Hungarian Red Cross. | Spritzendorfer-Ehrenhauser, who works for the Catholic diocese of Sankt Pölten, said she took the footage while delivering sanitary supplies to the camp with the Hungarian Red Cross. |
| “It was about 8pm and they were giving dinner to people,” she said. There were maybe 100 people trying to catch these plastic bags with sausages ... They were not able to organise a camp and treat them like human beings.” | “It was about 8pm and they were giving dinner to people,” she said. There were maybe 100 people trying to catch these plastic bags with sausages ... They were not able to organise a camp and treat them like human beings.” |
| Related: Refugee crisis: how does Europe solve a problem like Viktor Orbán? | Related: Refugee crisis: how does Europe solve a problem like Viktor Orbán? |
| While the UN high commission for refugees has praised the Hungarian police’s handling of the crisis, officers have complained of being forced to work long hours in impossible conditions. | While the UN high commission for refugees has praised the Hungarian police’s handling of the crisis, officers have complained of being forced to work long hours in impossible conditions. |
| Vincent Cochetel, the commission’s regional refugee coordinator, said: “It is not easy at the border, it was tense at the railway station and there is no quick fix because people sometimes are angry, they are sometimes aggressive, sometimes for good reason, sometimes for bad reason.” | Vincent Cochetel, the commission’s regional refugee coordinator, said: “It is not easy at the border, it was tense at the railway station and there is no quick fix because people sometimes are angry, they are sometimes aggressive, sometimes for good reason, sometimes for bad reason.” |