Iranian refugees sew lips shut in protest

In what is seen as one of the most extreme protests since the start of the refugee crisis, no fewer than 10 men trapped on the Greek Macedonia border have sewn their lips to silently oppose being blocked from continuing their journeys further into Europe.

The men who informed reporters that they are from Iran, passed needles with black thread through their lips, pulling tightly at the top and bottom lips

They then stripped to the waist — some writing ‘Iran’ on their foreheads, another scrawling ‘Just Freedom’ on his chest — and sat down in front of riot police.

Read also: Germany fears xenophobic attacks over refugee crisis

According to Stella Nanou, a U.N. refugee agency spokesperson who was on the scene Wednesday, the men have kept their lips sewn closed for a few days, effectively going on hunger strike.

The men are among 1,300 migrants stuck in no man’s land at the border amidst extreme conditions with almost all of them carrying heartbreaking inscriptions written on pieces of cardboards.

Refugees from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan are being allowed through but those from other countries are deemed “economic migrants” and turned back.

In a similar development, a man fleeing unbearable violence in his homeland was allegedly beaten by a guard and forced back into a war zone.

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