Islanders determined to prevent work on migrant centers

Local authorities and residents on the Aegean islands of Lesvos and Chios are preparing for a full-scale conflict to prevent the start of construction work over the next few days on new closed structures for migrants.

Protest groups said they are guarding the sites where the government intends to build the centers.

For its part, the government appears determined to move ahead with the construction of the two centers on the two islands, while riot police units have already been dispatched and taken up positions, along with police buses and water cannons to impose the peace, if need be.

More reinforcements are expected to arrive on Tuesday, prompting the reaction of local officials on Lesvos, who said ominously, "We are expecting them." 

An indication of the government's intentions is the letter sent by Migration and Asylum Policy Minister Notis Mitarakis...