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France says that it has completed an operation to move thousands of migrants out of the “Jungle” camp in Calais.
Fabienne Buccio, the prefect of Pas-de-Calais, said it was “mission accomplished” for the operation, which began on Monday.
The announcement came as parts of the camp continued to burn after blazes were set overnight and in the morning.
The camp has become a key symbol of Europe’s migration crisis, with its residents desperate to reach the UK.
Since the start of the week, French authorities have been bussing thousands of people to shelters and centres where they will be able to seek asylum. More than 4,000 were reported to have been relocated by the end of Tuesday.
The operation has gone faster than expected and on Wednesday afternoon Ms Buccio said: “It’s the end of the Jungle, our mission is over. There are no more migrants in the camp.”
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Unaccompanied minors are being accommodated in a temporary centre made out of converted shipping containers near the camp.
By the evening, Ms Buccio said, this would hold 1,500 minors and would then stop receiving people to ensure no more minors arrived in Calais.
The camp had an estimated 6,000-8,000 residents. The BBC’s Simon Jones, who is there, says it is possible a large number have disappeared – either to squat or sleep rough around Calais or go to other towns of their own accord.
The authorities fear they will return to set up camp again once the clearance is over.
Overnight, huts were set on fire on the main street leading into the camp, leaving makeshift shops in ashes. More fires were ignited during the day, but it is not clear who started them.
Ms Buccio told local media it was “a tradition among the migrant population to destroy their homes before leaving”.
However the Calais police commissioner said he had been told by migrants that the fires were started by activists.
One man was reported to have been injured when a gas canister exploded in the flames.
More than 1,200 police officers have been deployed for the clearance operation at the camp, which is unpopular locally and has required a large security presence to prevent migrants reaching the UK on lorries or trains heading across the Channel.
What is the Jungle?
- The Jungle camp is near the port of Calais and close to the 31-mile Channel Tunnel
- Officially about 7,000 migrants live in the camp. The Help Refugees agency said the final population ahead of its demolition was 8,143
- The camp was halved in area earlier this year but the population continued to rise, and reports of violence have increased
- Many migrants attempt to hide themselves in cargo vehicles entering the Channel Tunnel
- The area has been hit by protests from both locals and truck operators
Last year more than one million migrants – many fleeing the civil war in Syria – arrived in Europe. Countries struggled to cope and division arose in the EU over how best to deal with resettling people.
An EU-Turkey pact to try to stop migrants crossing to Greece and moves by Balkan nations to close their borders have driven down the number of people using the so-called eastern Mediterranean route.
However, migrants from African countries such as Eritrea and Somalia as well as West African nations such as Nigeria and the Gambia are continuing to attempt the crossing from Libya to Italy.
BBC