BIHAC, Bosnia-Herzegovina (AP) – Hundreds of migrants were stranded in a filthy, burnt-out tent camp in Bosnia on Saturday when heavy snow fell in the country and winter temperatures suddenly dropped.
Migrants in the Lipa camp in northwestern Bosnia wrapped themselves in blankets and sleeping bags to protect against the biting winds in the region, which borders Croatia, a member of the European Union.
A fire earlier this week destroyed much of the camp near the town of Bihac, which has already been harshly criticized by international officials and relief organizations as inadequate for housing refugees and migrants.
Despite the fire, Bosnian authorities have failed to find new shelter for the migrants in Lipa, leaving about 1,000 people left in the cold, without facilities or heat, and eating only meager food parcels provided by aid agencies.
“Snow has fallen, freezing temperatures, no heating, nothing,” tweeted Peter Van Der Auweraert, the head of the International Organization for Migration’s mission in Bosnia. “This is not how anyone should live. We now need political courage and action. “
Bosnia has become a bottleneck for thousands of migrants hoping to reach Western Europe. Most are trapped in Bosnia’s northwestern Krajina region because other areas in the ethnically divided nation have refused to accept them. The EU has warned Bosnia that thousands of migrants are going through a freezing winter without shelter, and has urged the country’s bickering politicians to put their differences aside and take action.
On Saturday, migrants crowded into the camp to receive water and food from the Red Cross in Bosnia, while police tried to maintain order. Some migrants wore face shields to protect them from the coronavirus.
“We live like animals. Even animals live better than us! said a man from Pakistan who identified himself only by his first name, Kasim. “If they don’t help us, we’ll die, so please help us.”
Plans to temporarily relocate the migrants to a closed facility in central Bihac have sparked protests from residents.
Left without a solution, migrants laid cardboard on the floor and set up improvised barriers to privacy in the only standing tent in the Lipa camp. Some people held their wet feet over small fires that migrants lit outside to warm up, while others wrapped themselves tightly in blankets for warmth. Despite the snow, many migrants wore sports shoes.
To get to Croatia, migrants often use illegal routes over a mountainous area along the border. Many have complained of violence and opposition by the Croatian police.