Greece moves hundreds of asylum seekers from Lesbos camp

Greece began moving hundreds of asylum-seekers on Monday from a camp on the island of Lesbos that holds around four times the number of people it was built for, Reuters reports. Over 11,000 refugees and migrants, most of whom have fled war or poverty in the Middle East, Asia or Africa, are holed up at Moria in Europe’s biggest migrant camp.

Some 635 people, mostly families, boarded a passenger ship on Monday for facilities in northern Greece, and more were due to leave later in the day.

Moving asylum-seekers from island camps to the mainland is part of government measures announced on August 31 to deal with the rising numbers. All of Greece's five formal island camps are over capacity.

Moria, a disused military base, has been criticized by humanitarian organizations for its squalid living conditions. It currently holds the highest number of people in three years.