Greek lawmaker starts hunger strike over Syrian refugees' plight

A Greek lawmaker joined Syrian refugees in a hunger strike outside the Athens parliament on Saturday to protest against the government's refusal to help them move to other European countries to reunite with relatives. Yiannis Michelogiannakis, a deputy from the leftist opposition Syriza party, said he decided to strike after an activist group said two protesters had died, one of a heart attack and one while trying to cross the border into Albania.
Their deaths could not be independently verified. The government said on Tuesday it could not help the refugees because they had not applied for asylum or shelter. About 300 Syrian refugees have camped outside parliament since November 19 demanding the right of passage to other European countries and some have started a hunger strike. The migrants refuse to register because that, according to European Union law, would mean they would have to stay in Greece as the first EU country they entered as refugees.