Migrants in Hungary break through police lines over camp conditions

ROSZKE, Hungary, Sept. 8 (UPI) -- Hundreds of migrants broke through police lines at a holding camp on Tuesday near the town of Roszke, Hungary, after complaining of being held in undesirable conditions.

The migrants, mostly from Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria, have continuously complained of bad conditions at the camp and of not knowing what their future holds.

Many of them are attempting to reach Germany as they await registration in Hungary.

Hungary has become a focal point in the migratory crisis as many would-be refugees have crossed its border with Serbia. Migrants who have made it to their more desirable destinations in Western Europe have also complained of poor conditions in Hungarian camps.

Several migrants have been waiting in Roszke for days, where temperatures have fallen to 40 degrees Fahrenheit at night. About 1,000 remain at the camp awaiting buses to take them to the next destination in their journey.

"At night, it is so cold," Mahmoud Alatrash, 29, told The New York Times. "I think we will never leave. I think we will die here."

The Hungarian government defended itself by stating it was attempting to enforce the European Union rules on the movement of migrants.

The European Union rule on refugees, known as the Dublin Regulation, says asylum seekers must register in the first EU member country in which they arrive. Germany recently said it would suspend the rule for Syrian migrants who travel to the country.

Germany Vice Chancellor Sigmar Gabriel said Tuesday that Germany would be able to receive at least 500,000 asylum-seekers per year for several years.