A protest by a group of migrants at the Safi detention centre yesterday evening turned aggressive, the Home Affairs Ministry said.

The migrants, some of whom are being kept there due to a lack of space in the open centres, staged a protest last night, chanting cries of ‘Freedom’ and placing banners on the gates.

In a statement, the Home Affairs Ministry said that while the majority of the migrants obeyed the instructions of the authorities, a group of them turned aggressive. Police and soldiers were called in to assist the detention officers in calming the situation down.

Several of the migrants being held at the detention centre are awaiting relocation to other EU countries and Home Affairs Minister Michael Farrugia has said the process is set to be complete in a matter of weeks.

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