Armed migrants attacked the Röszke 2 border crossing station and broke in the fence on Wednesday afternoon; people attempting to forcibly enter Hungarian territory at the scene are being held back by a police cordon, the Government Spokesperson said at a press conference held on location at 5:30pm yesterday evening.
Zoltán Kovács told reporters: hundreds of migrant armed with sticks and metal pipes attacked police at 3:45pm, throwing stones and bottles of water at them. They broke down the fence that closes the border crossing station at night.
Police have been keeping the aggressive crowd back using their own bodies for hours now, he added. “In recent days we have repeatedly asked that those who wish to travel through Hungary observe the fundamental rules”, the Government Spokesperson stressed. According to Mr. Kovács, it seems something snapped on Wednesday afternoon and it is clear that we are not talking about a peaceful crowd, but about people who will not stop at violence to get through.
György Bakondi, the Prime Minister’s Chief Advisor on Homeland Security, stressed that the police will regulate Hungary’s security using all means provided for by law. Twenty police officers were injured in the clash until 5:30pm, he said. Two migrants, a boy and a girl, were thrown over the fence onto Hungarian territory by protestors and were also treated by ambulances at the scene.
Prior to the attack, the migrants issued an ultimatum to the police, demanding to be let into Hungarian territory, because otherwise they would resort to violence. The police will not give in to any ultimatum, the Chief Advisor declared.
The police reacted calmly to the situation, using tear gas and a water cannon to push back the attack, Mr. Bakondi said. “Other migrants don’t seem to be joining the group, but the Serbian police don’t seem to be doing anything either, despite the fact that the migrants are on the neighbouring country’s territory”, the Chief Advisor noted.