LILLE: Around 10 people were injured in clashes between rival migrant groups in the northern French port city of Calais, until recently a magnet for people trying to reach Britain, local authorities said on Tuesday.
A fight broke out on Monday night in a wooded industrial area near what had been the site of a sprawling shanty town known as the Jungle, demolished last October as several thousand refugees were relocated across France.
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Security forces stepped in and used tear gas in a bid to separate migrants caught up in the skirmishes, who were mainly from Eritrea and Ethiopia. Some 20 minors were sent to reception centers, authorities said.
Around 400 migrants are estimated to still be living in the area, according to humanitarian groups.
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France's northern coast has for years drawn streams of migrants fleeing war and poverty in Africa and Asia. They often hope to smuggling themselves across the Channel to Britain, drawn by the English language, family and contacts already there and the prospect of jobs.
Earlier in April a fire destroyed most of the Grande-Synthe migrant camp further east along France's coast, near Dunkirk, after fighting broke out there too.
Authorities say they have now rehoused most of the more than 1,110 people who had taken shelter at Grande-Synthe at locations across the country.
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