Lithuania will not extend state of emergency at Belarus border

Belarusian and Lithuanian border mark poles are seen near a four-meter-high fence on the Belarusian border in Druskininkai, Lithuania November 4, 2021. REUTERS/Janis Laizans

VILNIUS (Reuters) - The Lithuanian government on Wednesday decided against extending a state of emergency along the country's border with Belarus and at camps hosting migrants who had arrived from the country, Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte said.

EU member states accuse Belarus of encouraging illegal migrants from the Middle East, Afghanistan and Africa to cross the border into the EU in retaliation for sanctions imposed on Minsk over human rights abuses.