LESBOS, Greece—Amid protests, Greece on Friday resumed deportations of refugees and migrants from its islands to Turkey after a four-day pause, sending back 124 people on two boats from Lesbos to a nearby port on the Turkish coast.
Before the first boat left the island, four activists jumped into the sea to try to obstruct the operation — swimming to the front of the chartered ferry and grabbing the anchor chain — and were detained by the coast guard.
The migrants were placed on the boats by officers from the European Union’s border protection agency and taken to the Turkish port of Dikili where health and migration officials checked the passengers amid heavy security. After the checks, the migrants were whisked onto police-escorted buses.
An agreement between Turkey and the European Union went into full effect Monday, when 202 migrants were sent back.
Some 4,000 migrants and refugees who reached Greek islands from nearby Turkey after March 20 are being held in detention camps to be screened for deportation.
