A refugee in a German shelter died Thursday while trying to set his wife on fire, leaving the woman seriously injured and part of the building ablaze, police said.
The 45-year-old man, a Syrian, was previously known to police, said authorities in Ruedesheim on the Rhine river in the central state of Hesse.
The woman, who had previously separated from her husband, was taken to hospital by helicopter, police said. Two other people were injured in the fire in the shelter that houses 14 people.
Germany took in around one million asylum seekers last year and expects about 300,000 arrivals this year. The mass influx has forced Germany to accommodate the newcomers in hostels, sports halls and army barracks, where crowded conditions have at times sparked violent clashes.
Separately, migrants around Greece staged demonstrations at four sites Thursday to protest delays in implementing asylum procedures promised under a European Union agreement with Turkey.
Around 500 migrants chanting “open the borders” gathered Thursday in Greece’s second largest city, Thessaloniki.
“I’ve been here for six months and we are still trapped here. People reaching Italy can cross borders. But we are not allowed to, I don’t understand why,” said Abdo Rjab, a 21-year-old Syrian.

Source: Arab News