Belgium - Massive Brawl and Damage in refugee center. Ten wounded, Four arrests.

Massive Brawl and Damage in refugee center. Ten wounded, Four arrests. Source: (Theredaction.BE) [GoogleTranslated].

Belgium - In the refugee shelter of Florennes , in the province of Namur, last night broke out a massive brawl. The fight was between two rival groups of fifty Iraqi and Afghan asylum seekers. Eventually the federal police had to intervene. Ten people have been put under administrative arrest and the damage to the center is considerable.

The problems began Wednesday night around 22:30. Thirty police officers came to the center and were able to calm the situation, but two hours later, tempers flared again high. Everything was beaten with baseball bats and windows, tables and doors had to believe it. It is then that the police asked for help from the federal police.

The brawl resulted in ten wounded. Three were taken by ambulance to the hospital, the others with a taxi. Four persons were arrested what will happen to the rest remains to be seen.

Secretary of State for Asylum and Migration Theo Francken (N-VA) went yesterday evening with the director general of Fedasil, the governor and the mayor on the spot. "It is intolerable to me that what happened here yesterday," he responds to VRT news. "We are particularly welcoming, but there are really limits. This we can not tolerate, this is way out of line."

"The incidents are included in the asylum applications (of such persons, ed.). When it comes to effective convictions, it may be that their asylum application is therefore denied", emphasizes Francken. "The people in the field do much to avoid this up. It is unfortunate that it happens anyway."

Overcrowding as a cause?

According Fedasil is the cause of the brawl to the overcrowding of the shelters. "We do not yet know all the details, but our centers are overstaffed, also in Florennes," said Mieke Candaele Fedasil. "Our experience shows often it does lead to tensions between residents, especially when higher concentrations of certain nationalities are present."