February 29 (SeeNews) - Tensions at Idomeni, on the Macedonia-Greece border, escalated on Monday as a group of refugees broke through the border fence in an attempt to enter Macedonia, prompting the police to fire tear gas at them.
The refugees used a steel pole to tear down part of the border fence, TV footage posted on the website of the Macedonian news agency, MIA, showed. It was not immediately clear how many of them crossed the border.
The news agency quoted Greek police data according to which between 5,000 and 7,000 people are waiting in Idomeni to cross over into Macedonia.
Earlier this month the police chiefs of Macedonia, Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia and Austria agreed to restrict the flow of migrants through their countries to no more than 580 per day. The decision has left thousands stuck in Greece.
Since the beginning of the year, more than 111,000 refugees have arrived in Greece by sea, according to data of the International Organization for Migration. A large part of them have headed north to Germany and other countries in Western Europe via the Western Balkans.