Επαναπροώθηση ΕΛ.ΑΣ Θεσσαλονίκη 30/9/2020

• Date of incident: 30-9-2020

• Location: Thessaloniki

• Law enforcement involved: Greek Police Officers

• Number of people pushed back: 30

• Nationalities : Tunisian (respondent), Afghani, Moroccan, Algerian,

• How many had documents for sure: 1

• Demographics (women, children, etc): Infants and children involved

• Method of expulsion: People were driven to Evros/ Meriç river and they were forced to cross the Greek/ Turkish border.

• Documenting organisation: Border Violence Monitoring Network (BVMN)

• Description: The respondent stayed in the camp in Diavata when the police took him and other 30 to 40 other people from Diavata to the Police Headquarters (“Megalo”) in Thessaloniki. From Megalo, the respondent was taken to “another big police station” in the same white vans, with the same people from Diavata Camp. This time, the police took their bags, phones, and money. Afterwards, the respondent was put in a cell on a blue bus without windows along with the other people from Diavata. Then, the groups were transported in a car one after another to an “army station.” They were driving for around half an hour when the truck stopped “in a secret place” close to the border. Then, in groups of 15, the people walked to the river for approximately 20 minutes. At the river, before the people were loaded into a dinghy, they were beaten with tree branches and told “no one will come back after this torture” by the police.

• Documents : https://www.borderviolence.eu/violence-reports/september-30-2020-0700-evros-border/ 

30/09/2020

“YOU CAN’T IMAGINE HOW SOMEONE IS SLEEPING AND THEN SOMEONE TOOK ME BY FORCE FROM THIS PLACE”

Date and time: September 30, 2020 07:00

Location: Evros border

Coordinates: 41.323474855081, 26.501087458021

Pushback from: Greece

Pushback to: Turkey

Demographics: 30 person(s), age: 27, from: Afghanistan, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia

Minors involved? Yes

Violence used: beating (with batons/hands/other), insulting, theft of personal belongings

Police involved: 9 plain clothed police officers, unknown number of officers in black clothes and balaclavas, 1 alleged Frontex officer from Germany (German), 2 policemen by the river

Taken to a police station? yes

Treatment at police station or other place of detention: no translator present, denial of access to toilets, denial of food/water

Was the intention to ask for asylum expressed? Yes

Reported by: Anonymous Partner

ORIGINAL REPORT

The respondent, a 27-year-old man from Tunisia, walked from Turkey to Thessaloniki for 25 days. He then stayed in the camp in Diavata, a village on the outskirts of Thessaloniki, for 10 days. On the 30th of September 2020, at 7 am, the respondent was sleeping when the police took him and between 30 to 40 other POM from Diavata to the Police Headquarters (“Megalo”) in Thessaloniki. The police were plain clothed and spoke Greek. They arrived in a bus (“a lot of people inside”), together with three white vans that lacked signs or writing that would identify them as police. The respondent was without shoes and only dressed in a t-shirt and shorts when he was violently put in one of the vans by the police.

“They didn’t explain. He said they shocked me…They pushed us inside the vans and they kicked us…You can’t imagine how someone is sleeping and then someone took me by force from this place.”

People-on-the-move that refused to enter the vans were beaten by the police, recalled the respondent. These people were from Syria, Afghanistan, Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia. Besides, he reportedly witnessed police “throw away” the papers of one person. When one person told the police that he has police papers, he was told to “shut up.” This corresponds to reports collected by BVMN in which the police destroyed legal documents of people on the move.

The respondent was not informed which police station he was brought to by the police. He knew that it was still in the centre and that a bridge was close by. Eventually, he could identify the Police Headquarter Megalo in photographs. At the Megalo Headquarter, the respondent’s clothes were checked and his body searched. Then, he was put in a cell along with the people from Diavata where he stayed from 9 am to 4 pm. The respondent was not informed about why he was taken to the police station by the police nor was he presented with a translator. He did not receive any food and water and was forced to drink water from the toilet. He could not recall the exact number of people he shared a cell with as it was very crowded.

The respondent’s claim for asylum was ignored by the authorities in Megalo.

From Megalo, the respondent was taken to “another big police station” in the same white vans, with the same people from Diavata Camp. The respondent does not know the exact location of the police station, however, he stated that the journey lasted for approximately 5 minutes.

Together with the respondent’s description of the station, this suggests that he was brought to the Police Department Republic Square in Thessaloniki.

At the police station, the authorities carried out the same procedure: the people had to undress and their bodies were searched. This time, the police took their bags, phones, and money. The personal belongings were not returned.

Our respondent was also not given food or water at the second police station. Instead, he and the other people-on-the-move were threatened with violence: “if we see someone like to stand up and look to our face, we will beat him,” officers inside the station said to the detainees. The respondent witnessed one person being beaten up badly when he asked for water and food.  After 20 minutes at the police station, the respondent was put in a cell on a blue bus without windows along with the other people from Diavata. The description of the bus corresponds to the riot vans used by the police. They drove for approximately 3 hours until they reached Lasmos in eastern Greece.

Here, the people were zip-tied and divided into groups of 14 people by 9 Greek police officers in civil clothes. Then, the groups were transported in a car one after another to an “army station.”

At the army station, the respondent recalls that “the place was full of people,” including many minors. He remembers that it was especially difficult for them as they were “too young.”

He could not determine how many in total. There, the police wore black clothes and balaclavas and the respondent could hear them speak different languages. He referred to some authorities as “Frontex officers” and one man said that he is German and from Frontex, however that was not confirmed by any flags or logos as he describes them as wearing plain black clothing and balaclavas.

The respondent witnessed two racist attacks towards a man from Afghanistan and a man from Libya by two men that said they were German and Greek. The German officer told the Afghan man, “I was torturing your people in your country and I find you again here in the European area” as the respondent recollected, afterwards the officer started beating the man. Another attack occurred when the respondent heard a Greek officer saying “no one will come back here, because it’s my country” and eventually started beating a man from Libya. 

At night, the respondent was loaded onto a green military truck, “it is a mercedes truck and they were hiding in it like 100 people.” They were driving for around half an hour when the truck stopped “in a secret place” close to the border. Our respondent believes that they didn’t stop right by the river to evade turkish soldiers. Then, in groups of 15, the people walked to the river for approximately 20 minutes. At the river, before the people were loaded into a dinghy, they were beaten with tree branches and told “no one will come back after this torture” by the police.

They were put onto a dinghy in groups of around ten people. The respondent asserts that two men from Afghanistan manoeuvred the dinghy, one was driving, the other one was guiding. The respondent recalled that he saw these two Afghan men waiting with another two policemen in a white car when his group reached the river. Numerous other testimonies collected by the BVMN have reported the involvement of Afghan and Pakistani drivers at the Greek-Turkish border. These similar procedures suggest that this outsourcing has become an unofficial policy at the Greek land border.

On the dinghy, the respondent described hearing fired shots from Kalashnikovs used by the Turkish army. “Shooting to another people in the other side” as he called to mind. Then, the respondent spotted an army truck on the Turkish side, he and his group ran away when they saw the truck approaching them once they reached Turkish land. In Turkey, the respondent and his group arrived without shoes, clothes, phones and money. He cannot remember which village they reached first. Eventually, the respondent found broken shoes in the trash and managed to fix them. With the help of Turkish citizens, he reached Istanbul within 3 days of traveling for a journey that would otherwise take 2 hours. At the end of the testimony, the respondent stated:

“I am afraid to stay here because it is not a safe place. I’m afraid to have the same experience of me, the last time, so it is not a safe experience for me now like I feel afraid all the time…. I prefer to go to Athens, to find a work to complete my work because I don’t have any money to complete my way to another safe country maybe, not like here.”

The location of the pushback is very roughly estimated as the respondent was not able to remember specific locations at the border.

Επαναπροώθηση ΕΛ.ΑΣ-ΣΤΡΑΤΟΣ Ορεστιάδα 26/9/2020

• Date of incident: 26-9-2020

• Location: near Orestiada

• Law enforcement involved: Greek Police Officers / Greek Army 

• Number of people pushed back: 55

• Nationalities : Afghani, Pakistani, Syrian, Moroccan, Algerian, Congolese

• How many had documents for sure: –

• Demographics (women, children, etc): Infants and children involved

• Method of expulsion: People were driven to Evros/ Meriç river and they were forced to cross the Greek/ Turkish border.

• Documenting organisation: Border Violence Monitoring Network (BVMN)

• Description: Close from Drama, the respondent and his group were sleeping in a forest when they were suddenly woken up by six “masked men” and one man in a blue uniform. The seven men took the bags, phones and wallets from the group and told them to get into a grey Ford transit. They were taken into a room which they estimated to be four by four meters and was already filled with 50 to 60 people. Then, the men in camouflage uniform and with black balaclavas told them all to leave the room and get into a lorry while they were holding batons and used them to hit them. The lorry stopped close to Evros river. Then, 10 at once, they were taken to the Turkish side of the river.

• Documents : https://www.borderviolence.eu/violence-reports/september-26-2020-2300-near-orestiada/ 

26/09/2020

“YES, THIS BLUE BAND WITH THE EU FLAG!”

Date and time: September 26, 2020 23:00

Location: Near Orestiada

Coordinates: 41.513918990944, 26.575468297841

Pushback from: Greece

Pushback to: Turkey

Demographics: 55 person(s), age: 10 months to 60 years , from: Afghanistan, Pakistan, Syria, Morocco, Algeria, DR Congo

Minors involved? Yes

Violence used: beating (with batons/hands/other), threatening with guns, theft of personal belongings

Police involved: Six “masked men” without and five with assault rifles, one Frontex officer (nationality unclear), min. 5 officers in Greek uniform and 6 people in camouflage uniform with balaclavas

Taken to a police station? yes

Treatment at police station or other place of detention: detention, no translator present, denial of access to toilets, denial of food/water

Was the intention to ask for asylum expressed? No

Reported by: josoor

ORIGINAL REPORT

On September 10, at around 8pm, the respondent crossed the border to Greece together with three other men close from Marasia. They kept walking for 17 days. 

The respondent describes how all night long in every night, patrol cars were driving around. On the seventh day, the respondent spotted police on top of a mountain close from the village of Roussa who appeared to be searching the area with binoculars and spotlights. 

In Roussa, the group encountered an old Greek man. They begged him not to call the police, but he did not respond so they started running away, uphill. Shortly after, they saw five police cars searching the valley. 

In Esochi, they met three other men on the move, two Algerians and one Tunisian and decided to continue together. In Xanthi, the Tunisian man was not able to continue anymore and decided to try his luck at the bus stop. 

The respondent and the other five proceeded by foot, following highway 2. Suddenly they witnessed another group of three being apprehended by police who had been hiding under a bridge. The officers unleashed their dogs to stop and arrest the three strangers. 

While waiting for the situation to calm down, the respondent and his group met four Pakistani men. They exchanged water and cigarettes with each other. After a while, the Pakistanis tried their luck first and successfully passed by the bridge without police apprehending them. Shortly after, the respondent and his group continued as well. 

In Kavala, they met an old Greek man who gave them coffee and cigarettes and told them to wait. They were scared and were thinking of running away while he was gone but then he returned with a bag full of food that he had gotten from his workplace. 

In another village the next day, they found another man and his son and asked them for water. The old man wanted to give it to them, but the son called the police instead. The whole group of six tried to run away, but one of the Algerians was caught by police and the respondent believes the second Algerian was able to run away but is not sure as they lost him. The respondent was now left with the same three people he had initially crossed the border with. 

Close from Drama, they were sleeping in a forest when they were suddenly woken up by six “masked men” (dressed in black, wearing balaclavas) and one man in a blue uniform. One of the masked men held a gun against the respondents head and asked where they were from, but nobody was beaten. The seven men took the bags, phones and wallets from the group and told them to get into a grey Ford transit. The respondent described that some of them were not speaking Greek but English with each other. When asked for specifics, the respondent explained that the man in the blue uniform appeared not to speak Greek. When asked for more details regarding the uniform, the respondent explained it was bright blue and had “police” written on it (in English). When asked if it carried any flags, the respondent said yes, the flag of the European Union. When shown a picture of the light blue Frontex armbands, the respondent immediately said “yes, this blue band with the EU flag”. Unfortunately, the respondent was not able to clearly identify a specific uniform when shown several examples. 

The six masked men and the apparent Frontex officer made the whole group board the car. Two of the masked men drove the car, the others stayed behind. After around four hours, they arrived at a detention site which the respondent is sure was located in Alexandropouli. The respondent describes it as looking like a police station. Outside, there were several officers in Greek police uniforms. Inside were six or seven people in green camouflage uniform. All of them were wearing balaclavas. 

The respondent and his group were taken into a room which they estimated to be four by four meters and was already filled with 50 to 60 people. There were several families among them, one with a very small baby of around 10 or 11 months. There were people from Afghanistan, Pakistan, Morocco, Syria, Algeria and DR Congo. They were held there for around 8 hours without water, food or access to a toilet. 

Then, around 7pm, the men in camouflage uniform and with black balaclavas told them all to leave the room and get into a lorry (green camouflage as well). They were holding batons and used them to hit people while they were getting on the lorry. One of these soldiers spoke Turkish, the others Greek. 

The lorry drove for around three hours and stopped close to Evros river. Five soldiers with balaclavas and batons (possibly the same as at the detention site) were present as well as five men dressed in black with balaclavas and assault rifles. 

The whole group had to wait in silence for one hour before the boat was ready. Then, 10 at once, they were taken to the Turkish side of the river. 

There they walked until they found a taxi that took them back to Istanbul. The respondent was not able to say where exactly the pushback occurred, the location is thus roughly estimated based on the other details.

Επαναπροώθηση ΕΛ.ΑΣ-ΣΤΡΑΤΟΣ Θεσσαλονίκη 21/9/2020

• Date of incident: 21-9-2020

• Location: Thessaloniki

• Law enforcement involved: Greek Police Officers / Greek Army

• Number of people pushed back: 70

• Nationalities : Syrian (respondent), Afghani, Pakistani, Iraqi

• How many had documents for sure: 1 (respondent)

• Demographics (women, children, etc): women involved

• Method of expulsion: People were driven to Evros/ Meriç river and they were forced to cross the Greek/ Turkish border.

• Documenting organisation: Border Violence Monitoring Network (BVMN)

• Description: The respondent was approached by two policemen in Aristotelous Square of Thessaloniki and then, he was held in the police station for about five hours. Later, he was transferred to a different police station in Thessaloniki. He was detained overnight until the next day. On Monday, September 21st, the respondent was put in a white van with 10 other persons, and they were driven to the border.

• Documents : https://www.borderviolence.eu/violence-reports/september-21-2020-0000-evros-border/ 

21/09/2020

“DEPORTATION OF BENEFICIARY OF INTERNATIONAL PROTECTION IN GERMANY”

Date and time: September 21, 2020 00:00

Location: Evros River, Border between Greece and Turkey

Coordinates: 41.6771297, 26.5557145

Pushback from: Greece

Pushback to: Turkey

Demographics: 70 person(s), age: Unknown, from: Afghanistan, Pakistan, Syria, Iraq

Minors involved? Unknown

Violence used: theft of personal belongings

Police involved: Greek police, several white unmarked vans, officers in brown/camouflage uniforms, officers dressed in black with balaclavas

Taken to a police station? yes

Treatment at police station or other place of detention: detention, fingerprints taken, photos taken, personal information taken, papers signed, no translator present

Was the intention to ask for asylum expressed? Yes

Reported by: Mobile Info Team

ORIGINAL REPORT

The respondent is a Syrian national who arrived on European shores in 2015 and was granted asylum in Germany. In 2017 he travelled to Greece to welcome his children who were in the process of crossing from Turkey, due to delays to family reunification in Germany. Unknowing of the consequences, he approached the Greek-Turkish border where he was captured and, despite being in possession of a valid German residence permit, he was illegally pushed back to Turkey. The respondent re-entered Greece through one of the hotspot islands where he was bound by geographic restrictions and could not travel for 6 months. He was eventually allowed to travel to Athens where he could access the German embassy. In April 2019, he relocated to Thessaloniki where he has been waiting for the protection he was granted to be recognized and be given a visa to enter Germany. While waiting for the visa/to be recognized, he was homeless.

On the Sunday of September 20, the respondent was approached by two policemen in Aristotelous Square of Thessaloniki around midday. He was asked for identification which he produced, though he was in possession of an expired document “khartia”, document issued by the police to regularize an asylum seeker’s stay until s/he has access to register her/his asylum application. He was taken to the closest police station to the Square, he stated that on foot it took two minutes. At the police station, his backpack and his belongings were removed: his telephone, his Syrian national ID, as well as other documents in his possession, and 40 euros in cash.

He was held in the police station for about five hours and then he was transferred to a different police station in Thessaloniki. He recognized the police station, as he had been there before and had received a “khartia” from there in the past (the validity of the “khartia” varies between 30 days and 6 months, depending on the nationality of the asylum seeker; recently the practice has changed and the validity is generally 30 days indifferent to the nationality of the applicant).

At the second police station, he was fingerprinted, his photo was taken, and he was asked to sign documents in Greek without being provided interpretation. He was detained overnight until the next day. On Monday, September 21st, the respondent was put in a white van with 10 other persons, and was driven to the border. He described the drive taking about 4 hours and that there were two vans with people destined for the border. He describes the van as being small and having tinted or covered windows. In the van with him, a Syrian Kurd told him how they have arrested him while his child was left in a camp. He could not explain the policemen the situation without interpretation and kept on repeating “baby, baby”. The respondent has lost contact with the individual and was not given more information than presented.

The vans dropped the persons at a location where between 60-70 persons were kept. The respondent identified three Somali women and one older Syrian woman. The nationalities varied, he stated that “they don’t care about your nationality”, seemingly implying that everyone will be pushed back despite protection needs and vulnerabilities.

The officers present during the operation were wearing camouflage uniform, “from yellow to brown”, while other officers were wearing black uniform and balaclava to cover their faces. The respondent states that the officers performing the pushback at the river, wore black clothes and had covered faces. He describes that all were armed with guns and batons.

From the detention place, the respondent as part of a 60 to 70 persons group were driven to the border in a truck. He reports that the officers were violent at times to encourage people to stay quiet or to move in an organized manner from the truck to the boats. He reports that the boat was hidden in the trees on the river bank and taken out to be used to transport people over the river. He also reports that accompanying the policemen he could hear two men who spoke a Kurdish dialect. They “pushed” the boat and assisted the policemen in the operation. The operation took place at night in order to avoid spotting from Turkish border guards, according to the respondent.

Once they were crossed over, the respondent reports that he ran away to avoid interception from the Turkish police, as he is Syrian and could risk deportation to Syria (he is not in the possession of the “kimlik” – Turkish ID – which could provide him protection from deportation). The respondent is currently in Istanbul.

Επαναπροώθηση ΕΛ.ΑΣ-ΣΤΡΑΤΟΣ Έβρος 18/9/2020

• Date of incident: 18-9-2020

• Location: Evros/ Meriç river

• Law enforcement involved: Greek Police Officers / Greek Army 

• Number of people pushed back: 80-90

• Nationalities : Afghani, Pakistani, Syrian, Moroccan, Algerian

• How many had documents for sure: –

• Demographics (women, children, etc): families and children involved

• Method of expulsion: People were driven to Evros/ Meriç river and they were forced to cross the Greek/ Turkish border.

• Documenting organisation: Border Violence Monitoring Network (BVMN)

• Description: The respondent was approached while walking by a police officer, who led him into the police station where, the officer took away all his personal belongings of value. Then, he was transferred in a cell, where were already 10-15 people. Later, the respondent was brought into a van with 20 to 25 other people from the cell. They were driving to a building, which the respondent described as a “border police station’’. He was in the cell with 80 to 90 people and all of them were beaten by police officers. Around two o’clock at night, all of the detainees were brought to a river by four vans. 

• Documents : https://www.borderviolence.eu/violence-reports/september-18-2020-0200-river-4-hours-walking-distance-from-ipsala-turkey/ 

18/09/2020

“FORCED TO WALK INTO THE RIVER AT THE GREEK/TURKISH BORDER BY TURKISH SOLDIERS AFTER BEING PUSHED BACK FROM GREECE”

Date and time: September 18, 2020 02:00

Location: Maritsa River 4 hours NW walking distance from Ipsala, Turkey

Coordinates: 40.943603263318, 26.356455772012

Pushback from: Greece, Turkey

Pushback to: Greece, Turkey

Demographics: 80-90 person(s), age: 8-38 years old, unknown years old, from: Afghanistan, Pakistan, Syria, Morocco, Algeria

Minors involved? Yes

Violence used: beating (with batons/hands/other), kicking, water immersion, forcing to undress, theft of personal belongings

Police involved: 1 police officer in a black uniform, Greek police, 5 male officers in black trousers, army-coloured t-shirts and black face masks, 1 dinghy; 20-25 “Turkish army soldiers”, white unmarked vans

Taken to a police station? Υes

Treatment at police station or other place of detention: detention, no translator present, denial of food/water

Was the intention to ask for asylum expressed? Yes

Reported by : Mobile Info Team

ORIGINAL REPORT

On Thursday, September 17th 2020, at around two o’clock in the afternoon, the respondent, a 36-year-old man from Pakistan was walking alone at a bus station in the city of Xanthi, in order to buy a bus ticket to Thessaloniki, when he was approached by a police officer in a black uniform. The officer was telling him from afar to come towards him. The respondent, who was very hungry and in pain because he had been walking for five days from the border to Xanthi, walked towards the officer, who was then walking him into the police station that was in front of the bus station. The respondent told the police inside the station about his pain and hunger as well as his wish to apply for Asylum in Greece, but the officers did not ask him any further questions. The officer in the black uniform searched his personal belongings and took away the respondents two phones, power bank, extra clothes, 2000 Turkish Lira, 70 Euros and the bag he was carrying it in. Afterwards they brought him into an extra room, where he had to undress and undergo a body search. Three different police men in brown trousers and brown t-shirts were conducting the body search, after which the respondent was allowed to put almost all of his clothes back on, except a jacket which he was wearing at that time due to the colder weather at the border areas, which the police just threw into a bin.

Afterwards he was brought into the cell at the station, and even though he explained to the officers again that he was hungry and has not eaten for the last two days, they did not offer him any water or food. In the cell were already ten to fifteen people when the respondent was brought in, and by the time he left the cell at night, he estimated that around 30 to 35 people were detained with him. He described the people in the cell coming from Pakistan, Afghanistan, Syria, Morocco, Algeria, and that also families with children were held in the same cell with the men. He described a Pakistan man with his two children being at the age of eight to ten years old and five Arabic women with their families. In the cell, the detainees had to sleep on the floor because there was no space, and the toilets were accessible but very dirty.

Around ten o’clock in the evening, it was already dark outside, the respondent was brought into a van with 20 to 25 other people from the cell. The van was plain white and had no windows and he estimated that they were driving for about one and a half hours before they reached a building, which the respondent described as a “border police station”, because of the cells inside and the fact that it was very close to the border.

At the “border police station”, he was in the cell with 80 to 90 people. He described that seven or eight male officers in brown trousers and shirts who were speaking Greek to each other, were conducting body searches again, but this time they were taking away the shoes from the detainees. before they started to beat the detainees, including him, by slapping with their hands, kicking with their feet and beating them with metal sticks. Afterwards they were brought into a cell, where they had no food or water and “a lot of dirty toilets”.

After one to one and a half hours, the respondent estimated it must have been around two o’clock at night, all of the detainees were brought to a river by four vans. The vans looked the same as the one that brought the respondent from the police station in Xanthi to the “border police station”, white with no writing on it, metal in front of the windows and a small hole for air circulation. He estimated the drive was about 30 to 35 minutes long. He also stated that the families were put in the van with the men, and that he himself was put in one van with 25 or 27 other detainees. The respondent stated that 3 police officers were in the van, one driving and two in the back of the van with him, which he recognized by their voices because they were the only ones allowed to speak in the van.

When he was pushed out of the van, it was very dark outside and he was only able to see once what the officers at the river were wearing; black trousers, army-colored t-shirts, and black face masks that only showed the eyes. He described them as being different from the officers from the “border police station”. He stated that there were about five officers, but that he is not sure, because he was ordered by them to keep his head down all times and threatened with beatings if he did otherwise.

He stated that the 80 to 90 people from the “border police station” were all at the river, including the families and children. Before the people were brought to the turkish side of the river with a dinghy, the respondent described that the officers were “beating them brutally” with big wooden sticks and that there was “a lot of crying, but they (officers) don’t care”. He was not able to recall if the families were beaten with the wooden sticks as well.

The dinghy, which the respondent described as a plastic and air boat, was driven by two men from Afghanistan, while two Pakistan men on the Turkish side pulled the people out of the boat and one men from Afghanistan told the people on the Greek side of the river to get into the boat. He described them as young men being between 20 and 38 years old. The respondent stated that 14 or 15 people were put in the dinghy and that the two Afghan men drove it back and forth multiple times.

When the respondent reached the Turkish side, he was walking for about two or three minutes with other men to a road which he described as “not a real road, but for driving”, on which they sat down to rest because they were exhausted. Immediately, five vehicles arrived, which the respondent described as being of an army colour with nothing written on them. 20 to 25 men, which the respondent described as “army soldiers” having plates on their shoulders and arms, were coming out of the vehicles, telling the people to go back to Greece, not to come back to Turkey and that they had to go inside the river again to cross it. He stated that the families, children and “small guys’’ were taken into the back of two of the vehicles and drove off, while the remaining people, approximately 40 men were forced to go into the river. He stated that anybody who spoke up and did not walk back was slapped with the hand, including himself, or kicked with the feet, and that the “army soldiers” were throwing stones at him and the other men while they were walking into the river. The respondent stated that he does not know whether the greek officers were still at the river on the other side because it was very dark, but that he did not hear any noise from the other side when he was forced to walk back into the river.

After one and a half hours standing in the river, after the “Turkish army soldiers” were gone, he and the other men went out on the Turkish side and ran away in different directions. The respondent then walked for four hours barefoot to a petrol station in Ipsala together with three men from Pakistan and one man from Syria.

17/09/2020: European Parliament calls for independent investigations of pushbacks and border shootings in Aegean and Evros [& links to related GHM complaints]

We informed the EP that criminal investigations for both sets of allegations have been launched because we filed complaints. Here are the main ones:

• 18/03/2020: Complaint report to Prosecutor of Court of Cassation for illegal deportations, torture and attempted rape in Evros
• 18/03/2020: Μηνυτήρια αναφορά σε Εισαγγελέα Αρείου Πάγου για παράνομες επαναπροωθήσεις, βασανιστήρια και απόπειρα βιασμού στον Έβρο
• 08/05/2020: Complaint report to Prosecutor of Court of Cassation for illegal deportations, torture and shooting deaths of migrants/refugees in Evros
• 08/05/2020: Μηνυτήρια αναφορά σε Εισαγγελέα Αρείου Πάγου για παράνομες επαναπροωθήσεις, βασανιστήρια και θανάτους μεταναστών/προσφύγων από πυροβολισμούς στον Έβρο
• 27/08/2020: Μηνυτήρια αναφορά για 1389+ παράνομες επαναπροωθήσεις αλλοδαπών (Μάρτιος – Ιούλιος 2020)

Επαναπροώθηση ΕΛ.ΑΣ Θεσσαλονίκη 16/9/2020

• Date of incident: 16-9-2020

• Location: Lagadikia, Thessaloniki 

• Law enforcement involved: Greek Police Officers

• Number of people pushed back: 100

• Nationalities : Afghani, Pakistani, Syrian, Iraqi

• How many had documents for sure: –

• Demographics (women, children, etc): a family and children involved

• Method of expulsion: People were driven to Evros/ Meriç river and they were forced to cross the Greek/ Turkish border.

• Documenting organisation: Border Violence Monitoring Network (BVMN) / EFSYN

• Description: Respondent’s family were transferred in Lagadikia camp. After they were denied the accession to the asylum procedure, they were driven in “an abandoned place”. There, their belongings, their mobile phones and all the money they had in their possession were taken away by policemen. At this “abandoned place” there were about 100 people of different nationalities. All the people were loaded into two vehicles and they were transported to the river bank, where they were transported in groups across the river.

• Documents : 1)https://www.borderviolence.eu/violence-reports/september-16-2020-0000-lagadikia-greece/ 

16/09/2020

“PUSHBACK FROM LAGADIKIA CAMP”

Date and time: September 16, 2020 00:00

Location: Lagadikia, Greece

Coordinates: 40.6376256, 23.2428886

Pushback from: Greece

Pushback to: Turkey

Demographics: Approximately 100 person(s), age: 4, 14, 18 and other, from: Afghanistan, Pakistan, Syria, Iraq

Minors involved? Yes

Violence used: insulting, theft of personal belongings

Police involved: 10 policemen – moment of arrest, 3 policemen in the bus, 7 policemen present at unknown detention place

Taken to a police station? Υes

Treatment at police station or other place of detention: no translator present

Was the intention to ask for asylum expressed? Yes

Reported by : Mobile Info Team

ORIGINAL REPORT

The respondent is a Kurdish-Iraqi national. He arrived in Greece on September 3rd, together with his family composed of his wife and three daughters, 4 years old, 14 years old, and 18 years old. They are currently back in Iraq, after being pushed back from Greece to Turkey, from where they were subsequently deported to Iraq.

The respondent arrived in Thessaloniki through the land border and tried to access the asylum procedure and went to a police station where he expressed his will to apply for asylum. He waited in the police station for about 4 hours before deciding to leave since the police officers were refusing to register his application. He states that his children were exhausted. For the following 4 days they stayed in a hotel in the city after which they left and went to Lagadikia camp, located 40 km far from Thessaloniki.

In the camp they were assisted by camp residents with food and a place to stay, while organizations provided them with other non-food items as well as food. They were allowed to stay in a container with one other unregistered family, but since their asylum application was still not submitted the police was notified. On September 16th, police officers arrived in the camp, 10 uniformed officers in total according to the respondent and transferred them to a police station 20-25 minutes’ drive from the camp. They were told they will be registered and issued the necessary documentation. They were not fingerprinted, nor their information was registered, the respondent reports. Additionally, he states that the policemen purchased food for the people detained from the cash belonging to them. The respondent states that he expressed his wish to apply for asylum with the help of his oldest daughter who spoke English to the officers.

They were detained for 3 or 4 hours when they were picked up from the police station by a group of men in civilian clothing that the respondent describes as “the mafia”. He reports that after having an argument with the police officers at the station, the men came and took them in front of the other police officers. The respondent and his family together with other persons who were arrested and detained in the police station, were placed in a dark-blue bus, without inscription on the side, and grated windows. He states there were about 5 families and 5 single men in the bus, and 3 men that he does not identify as police officers. The men spoke Greek.

They were like mafia. They came there [at the police station] and take us. They look like mafia.

They were driven for about 6 hours and placed in “an abandoned place”. They took away their belongings, their mobile phones and all the money they had in their possession. He reports there were about 7 “commandos”, wearing different uniforms, military clothing of dark green colour, as well as blue uniforms; some wearing lights on their heads, some wearing weapons. At this “abandoned place” there were about 100 people of different nationalities, the respondent believes that they could have been Afghan, Pakistan, Syrian nationals and ethnic Kurds. All the people were loaded into two vehicles by 4 of the officers. The vehicles are described as closed military buses big enough to fit 50 people inside. They were transported to the river bank.

At the river bank, they were transported in groups across the river. One of the “commandos”, as the respondent called them, who wore green clothes and ferried them in the boat spoke Greek and Turkish, as well as a Kurdish dialect. At this stage, all of the officers involved wore balaclavas that covered their faces.

Once they were on the Turkish side of the river, the respondent and his family walked for one hour before encountering people who assisted them. The people said to the family:

Why you went to Greece? There is no humanity [in Greece]!

The family eventually returned to Istanbul. A few days later, they were arrested by the Turkish gendarmes and returned to Iraq. They were driven in a bus and released at the Turkish-Iraqi border.

The story has also been published in EFSYN, a Greek online newspaper available here

2) https://www.efsyn.gr/ellada/koinonia/260619_nea-kataggelia-gia-epanaproothisi-dyo-oikogeneion-koyrdon-me-pente-anilika 

21.09.2020, 06:00

Νέα καταγγελία για επαναπροώθηση δύο οικογενειών Κούρδων με πέντε ανήλικα παιδιά

Στελλίνα Μαργαριτίδου

Η τακτική της παράνομης επαναπροώθησης προσφύγων-αιτούντων άσυλο προς την Τουρκία συνεχίζεται και φαίνεται ότι εξαιτίας και των τεταμένων σχέσεων με τη γειτονική χώρα το τελευταίο διάστημα εντείνεται.

Μετά τις παράνομες επαναπροωθήσεις προσφύγων από τη δομή των Διαβατών το καλοκαίρι, έχουμε μια νέα καταγγελία, αυτή τη φορά για δύο οικογένειες Κούρδων από το Ιράκ και τη Συρία με πέντε ανήλικα παιδιά, το ένα μάλιστα με σοβαρό πρόβλημα υγείας που απαιτεί χειρουργείο.

Οπως εξηγεί ο δημοσιογράφος του Pishti-News, Πίσχτιβαν Τζαφ, στον οποίο έγινε η καταγγελία, οι δυο οικογένειες παρέμεναν για περίπου δέκα μέρες στη δομή στα Λαγκαδίκια περιμένοντας να υποβάλουν αίτηση ασύλου. Πριν από τρεις ημέρες άνδρες της αστυνομίας, κατά τα λεγόμενά τους, τους μετέφεραν με ένα βαν σε ένα μέρος στη Θεσσαλονίκη για να γίνει όπως τους είπαν η καταγραφή τους.

Ολα έμοιαζαν με μια διαδικασία ρουτίνας, όμως οι πρόσφυγες οδηγήθηκαν σε ένα υπόγειο, όπου τους πήραν ρούχα, τιμαλφή και 1.700 ευρώ που είχαν μαζί τους. Στη συνέχεια, αφού χωρίστηκαν οι άνδρες από τις γυναίκες και τα παιδιά, τους μετέφεραν με βαν σε ένα άλλο μέρος που απείχε έξι ώρες από τη Θεσσαλονίκη, όπου βρίσκονταν και άλλοι πρόσφυγες.

Οι συνθήκες που επικρατούσαν ήταν απαράδεκτες. Δεν υπήρχε καθόλου χώρος και δεν είχαν φαγητό ούτε νερό. Οπως καταγγέλθηκε στον Κούρδο δημοσιογράφο, οι δυο οικογένειες πέρασαν με φουσκωτά το ποτάμι (σ.σ. του Εβρου) και βρίσκονται τώρα σε κάποιο χωριό έξω από την Αδριανούπολη.

Οι παράνομες επαναπροωθήσεις προσφύγων έχουν ήδη από τις αρχές του καλοκαιριού μπει στο στόχαστρο της Human Rights Watch. Οι επαναπροωθήσεις παραβιάζουν κανόνες ανθρώπινων δικαιωμάτων, βάσει της Ευρωπαϊκής Σύμβασης για τα Δικαιώματα του Ανθρώπου, τονίζουν μέλη ΜΚΟ.

Το τελευταίο διάστημα έχουμε όλο και πιο συχνά διαδικασίες fast track επαναπροωθήσεων. Υπάρχουν περιπτώσεις απέλασης ακόμη και ανήλικων προσφύγων που εντόπισαν αστυνομικοί σε κεντρικούς δρόμους αστικών κέντρων, λένε εκπρόσωποι ΜΚΟ και επισημαίνουν ότι υπάρχει μεγάλη καθυστέρηση στην καταγραφή της αίτησής τους για διεθνή προστασία.

Επαναπροώθηση ΕΛ.ΑΣ Έβρος 15/9/2020

• Date of incident: 15-9-2020

• Location: Feres, Greece

• Law enforcement involved: Greek Police Officers 

• Number of people pushed back: 90

• Nationalities : Syrian, Algerian

• How many had documents for sure: 2

• Demographics (women, children, etc): women and children involved

• Method of expulsion: People were driven to Evros/ Meriç river and they were forced to cross the Greek/ Turkish border.

• Documenting organisation: Border Violence Monitoring Network (BVMN)

• Description: The police officers forced people to go to several detention centres, ending up in Feres, while using physical violence towards them. Mobile phones, bags and money were taken away from many of them. Then, they were driven to the Evros river, close to Feres, in a big truck. There they were separated into groups and forced to get on dinghies and reach the Turkish side.

• Documents : https://www.borderviolence.eu/violence-reports/september-15-2020-2200-feres-greece/ 

15/09/2020

“WHEN I TALK ABOUT MY STORY IT MAKES ME SO SAD BECAUSE I HAVE TO REMEMBER”

Date and time: September 15, 2020 22:00

Location: Feres, Greece

Coordinates: 40.895113, 26.249899

Pushback from: Greece

Pushback to: Turkey

Demographics: 90 person(s), age: 31, from: Syria, Algeria

Minors involved? Yes

Violence used: beating (with batons/hands/other), insulting, water immersion, theft of personal belongings

Police involved: 2 Greek police officers at initial arrest, several more Greek police officers at police stations

Taken to a police station? Yes

Treatment at police station or other place of detention: fingerprints taken, photos taken, papers signed, no translator present, denial of access to toilets, denial of food/water

Was the intention to ask for asylum expressed? No

Reported by: Anonymous Partner

ORIGINAL REPORT

The respondent is a 31-year-old man from Algeria. On the evening of the 12th September, he was with a male friend, 30 years old and also Algerian, walking besides the sea close to the port of Thessaloniki. Between 12 pm and 1 am on 13th September they were stopped by two Ο.Π.Κ.Ε Greek police officers on a motorbike. The police officers immediately started using physical violence towards them and afterwards they had to walk to a “secret place”. For the journey the respondent had to put his hands on the shoulders of his friend.

This “secret place” is described by the respondent as a dark place outside, surrounded by trees and close to the White Tower. There they found another two men from Algeria and shortly after another two men (unknown nationality) were brought to that same place where there were now 6 people-on-the-move and 12 or 13 police officers wearing police uniforms. There the police continued beating them using batons and kicking them for about 10 minutes. After that they were handcuffed before a police car arrived with which they were taken to a police station in the upper part of the city. It is not clear exactly, which police station they were brought to, but according to the respondent the journey from that place close to the white tower was about 20 minutes long and they drove uphill, which together with the fact that they were brought the next day to Megalo, leads to the assumption, that he was brought to the Sykies police department. When asking for the reason for his arrest, the respondent was told that it is because he didn’t have papers.

At this police station, two of his group were released because they had papers, the rest of them were slapped and beaten again with sticks, insulted in Greek and denied food or water. They had to ask for permission to go to the toilet. In the morning of the same day at 7:30 am two more of his group were taken away (their whereabouts are unknown) before the respondent and his friend were transferred to Thessaloniki police headquarters at 8 am with an ordinary police car.

At police headquarters, the police first checked their pockets and clothes which they had to take off. They gave them back their clothes afterwards but kept their phones and bags. They then took fingerprints of the respondent as well as pictures and he also had to sign Greek documents without any translation provided. In total the respondent stayed for 28 hours at police headquarters, and during that time only received one meal and a small bottle of water (0,5l).

On the next day, the 14th September at 12am the police zip-tied the hands of the respondent’s group which now consisted of 10 people, 5-6 Syrians, the respondent and his friend from Algeria and another 2-3 people with unknown nationality. His group was then put in the back of a green Mercedes van without windows or seats. With that van they were driving 35 minutes to another police station (the location of this police station is unknown). Once there, their money was taken from them, their bags, which were taken from them back in police headquarters, were handed over by the police to the driver of the Mercedes, who is described as a unknown Greek speaking person in civil clothes, and the respondent’s group themselves were transferred to a ‘big blue bus’, which indicates the use of a police bus.

In that big blue bus, which is divided in 12 small cells in the back, they were waiting for more people until the bus was almost full. In total they were then 30-35 people guarded by civil police (number of police officers in the bus is unknown). With this bus they drove to another police station (not signs of police but uniformed police officers there) close to Komothini which was however not really an actual police station but a temporary building made of plastic and metal as described by the respondent. He was put together with 75 people in a room of approximately 8 × 12 metres and had to stay there for 24 hours. There were other rooms similarly crowded at this police station. Due to the bad isolation of the ‘building’ it got extremely hot during the day and very cold in the night. Again, they were refused water or food. They had access to a toilet, from where they also drank water, yet it was very dirty according to the respondent.

“The toilet was so dirty and you have to drink water from there”

The police used violence in this station only against three people because they asked for their money. From this room in the night 25 people were taken away with a white van with no police insignia on it (their whereabouts are unknown).

On the next day, our respondent himself was put into the back of a white van with another 25 people and was taken from there to Feres. This was probably not an official police station in Feres as there were no police signs or logos. His group found another 50 people there including children and women. This station again is described as ‘so dirty’ by the respondent. Their guards (supposedly police), who were wearing balaclavas, also beat some people there. The same guards confiscated their clothes and shoes and they were left only with a t-shirt and boxers.

In the night they were in a group of 90 people including women and children taken to the Evros river close to Feres in a big truck and there separated into groups of 12 people each. At that point, two people of his group were beaten by the before mentioned men in balaclavas.

“They were taken off their clothes and they beat them a lot, badly, so badly”

When they reached the river around 10 pm they had to get on dinghies group by group and finally reached the Turkish side. The dinghies were driven by four people, one from Syria, two from Pakistan and one white man who was only talking English. The fact that the dinghies are not driven by Greek authorities or not even by Greek people has been witnessed already in other reports. https://www.borderviolence.eu/violence-reports/october-4-2020-1800-7-km-from-edirne/

On the Turkish side they were helped by the Turkish army and got to Ipsala which was 20km away from the point where they reached the Turkish side.

Επαναπροώθηση ΛΣ-ΕΛΑΚΤ Λέσβος 13/9/2020

• Date of incident: 13-9-2020

• Location: Lesvos Island

• Law enforcement involved: “masked men” (probably, Greek Coast Guard)

• Number of people pushed back: 11

• Nationalities : Lebanese (Respondent), Somalian

• How many had documents for sure: –

• Demographics (women, children, etc): women and children involved

• Method of expulsion: People were forced back to the sea.

• Documenting organisation: CNN

• Description: People were forced back to sea by “masked men” after they arrived on Greek shores. They were found by the rescuers in “punctured plastic dinghies with motors rendered unusable or on unseaworthy life rafts”.

• Documents : https://edition.cnn.com/2020/09/17/europe/greece-migrants-turkey-intl/index.html 

Masked men, assault and abandonment

Migrants allege Greece is pushing them back to sea

By Gul Tuysuz, Jomana Karadsheh and Brice Laine, CNN

Updated 0931 GMT (1731 HKT) September 17, 2020

North Aegean Sea — The warm glow of a bright orange life raft lights up the pitch-black night. A small hand opens the floating tent, revealing 11 people who stare wide-eyed at an approaching Turkish coast guard rescue mission.

A young girl clutches a doll as she climbs out of the motorless boat onto the Turkish ship. The rest of the group are pulled up to the deck.

“You really don’t want to know what they’ve done to us,” said Fatima Dhaiwi, looking over at her two daughters huddled under blankets. “Definitely, definitely not going again.”

Dhaiwi and the rest of the people on the ship tell CNN that they were forced back to sea by “masked men” after they arrived on Greek shores. Other migrants have also told CNN in recent weeks that they were pushed back from Greece, an accusation that Athens has repeatedly denied.

The United Nations’ refugee agency (UNHCR) has also sounded alarms about “an increasing number of credible reports” of men, women and children being informally returned to Turkey after arriving on Greek land or waters in recent months.

Around 5,000 asylum-seekers have arrived in Greece since the start of March, according to the UNHCR. That figure marks “a precipitous drop from previous years. Yet, the number of reported pushbacks, particularly at sea, has been rising,” the agency says. It has called on Greece to investigate the reports.

On September 13, a Turkish coast guard ship granted access to CNN to observe search-and-rescue efforts along the north Aegean Sea. The area accounts for nearly 50% of all sea crossings for migrants and refugees in 2020, according to the Turkish coast guard.

Since late February, 6,600 migrants were rescued at sea after being pushed back by Greek forces, according to the Turkish coast guard. They were found by the rescuers in “punctured plastic dinghies with motors rendered unusable or on unseaworthy life rafts,” the coast guard said in a statement on September 14. The 11 people taken onboard the previous day are included in that figure.

The Dhaiwi family set off for Turkey from crisis-ridden Lebanon six months ago with hopes of shuttling through Greece and ultimately settling in Germany. This was the family’s fifth attempt at seeking temporary refuge in Greece.

“They grabbed me from my neck and started hitting me,” said Dhaiwi, describing a confrontation on the Greek island of Lesbos in the north Aegean Sea roughly 12 hours after the family made landfall. “They put a knife to my husband’s stomach and they held a gun to my son’s head.”

CNN cannot confirm the identity or affiliation of the masked men. Lesbos is home to Europe’s largest migrant camp, which earlier this month was destroyed by a fire allegedly started by migrants protesting poor living conditions and Covid-19 restrictions in the settlement.

Saleh Dhaiwi holds up his hand, pointing at a wound he says was inflicted when he was shoved into the boat. The family members described being searched, and said their money and phones were taken from them.

The Dhaiwis’ testimony is similar to that of others on the boat. Ayat Abdi Ibrahim from Somalia said a group of men rounded up the migrants, breaking her spectacles and confiscating her medicines.

“Even animals are not treated like this,” said Ibrahim. “I didn’t want anything from them, no money, nothing, I just wanted to get to my husband in any way possible.”

Her husband has lived in Italy for five years. After the treatment she received on Lesbos, she says, she will not try to reunite with him again.

The Greek government defends its border policy, suggesting that the Turkish government has orchestrated media reports of pushbacks at sea as part of a disinformation campaign.

“Greece has every right as every sovereign state to defend its borders, we have a very tough but very fair border policy,” Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis told CNN’s Christiane Amanpour in August. “These types of reports are also an insult to our coast guard. The Greek coast guard has saved literally tens of thousands of refugees and migrants at sea.”

But the UNHCR says it has collected multiple reports of pushbacks at its office in Greece. The UN agency has called for an immediate investigation into the alleged practices.

“Given the nature, content, frequency, and consistency of these accounts, a proper investigation should be launched without further delay,” the UNHCR report said.

In response to CNN’s queries about the alleged events of the night of September 13, the Greek Migration Ministry said it “always operates in full respect to International Law and European Regulations.” However, the statement did not acknowledge the incident as described by the migrants and the Turkish coast guard.

“We strongly deny any claims that the Hellenic Coast Guard engages in illegal ‘pushbacks’ in the Aegean Sea, and we point out that the source, as you mention, of these allegations is the Turkish Coast Guard,” the Greek migration ministry said in a statement to CNN.

CNN has also been in close contact with an Afghan migrant, currently residing in the Turkish coastal city of Izmir, who has attempted multiple crossings into Greece. Hamid Fazli, 23, said he attempted the sea crossing three times this year with his family. During two of those attempts, he says, the Greek coast guard violently pushed them back to Turkish waters.

On May 16, Fazli asked for help from everyone he knew, including CNN. After his rescue at sea, he sent video of their life raft showing the Greek coast guard in the distance. CNN was able to match the video filmed by Fazli to a Turkish coast guard report published on May 20 showing the rescue of a vessel after it was allegedly pushed back at sea while attempting to get to the island of Samos.

On August 16, Fazli, his wife and 18-month-old son were caught by Greek authorities after they arrived on Lesbos along with a group of Somali refugees, he said.

They say they were searched and all their money and belongings confiscated. Those who tried to resist were beaten up, he said. They were told they would be taken into quarantine, but instead the group was moved onto a ship. They were then pushed onto a small raft and left in the open sea for several hours before being pulled out by the Turkish coast guard, according to Fazli.

“The water was very bad, a lot of waves, very dangerous and they do not see you are human,” said Fazli. “They don’t give us anything (not) even a bottle of water for my baby.”

Graphic: Renée Rigdon, CNN

CNN first met Fazli and a group of Afghans in March near the land border between Turkey and Greece. At the time, he said they arrived in Greece only to be captured, beaten up and had their belongings removed. Several migrants and refugees from Syria, Morocco, the Palestinian territories and Pakistan described similar incidents of violent pushback into Turkey at the land border.

Fazli said he will not attempt to seek refuge in Greece again. “We are not trying to go back because they sent us back like that last time. I wish we can go there, I wish they would accept us.”

Earlier this year, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan accused the European Union of not fulfilling its obligations under a 2016 deal with his country aimed at stemming the flow of migrants and refugees. Turkey says it was left to shoulder most of the burden of hosting more than 3.5 million refugees on its own.

Read more: Greek president visits tiny island at centre of eastern Mediterranean dispute, angering Turkey

Turkish authorities then loosened border restrictions, a move that the EU criticized, accusing Turkey of exploiting refugees and migrants for political leverage. At the time, the Greek Prime Minister accused Turkey of “weaponizing the issue.”

But Greece’s alleged pushbacks are a violation of international law as well as European regulations, according to migration experts and rights groups.

“When you push back people at sea, you endanger them and you are not complying with the obligation to have asylum proceedings,” said Nele Matz-Luck, a professor at Kiel University and co-director of the Walther Schucking Institute for International Law. “In the end it may be that there is no individual right to refugee status, but in the moment, the pushback operation violates the provisions in international law.”

Back on the rescue boat, curled up in pain, Riham Sheim, a 27-year-old Palestinian-Syrian from the Yarmouk refugee camp in Damascus, echoes the sentiments of her fellow migrants. “This was my first and last attempt,” she said.

To Sheim, who had made a perilous journey from Syria, only the European Union can provide the safe future she seeks. But now she has given up. “None of God’s countries want us,” she said.

Επαναπροώθηση ΕΛ.ΑΣ Λέσβος 12/9/2020

• Date of incident: 12-9-2020

• Location: Lesvos Island 

• Law enforcement involved: Greek Police Officers 

• Number of people pushed back: 37

• Nationalities : Afghani 

• How many had documents for sure: –

• Demographics (women, children, etc): 18 children involved

• Method of expulsion: Greek authorities rounded people up, mistreated them, shoved them into life rafts and abandoned them at sea.

• Documenting organisation: euronews.

• Description: Police took their phones and money, put them in the rafts and left adrift in the sea.

• Documents : https://www.euronews.com/2020/09/25/greece-accused-of-pushing-back-migrants-at-sea-to-turkey?fbclid=IwAR0F9iWLKnP3ZjbeuRfCFu82DZuWs92K24sW9-uPNe2D6RO8k_kScGUNLks 

GREECE

Greece accused of ‘pushing back’ migrants at sea to Turkey

By AP • last updated: 25/09/2020

A Turkish coast guard officer, wearing protective gear to help prevent the spread of coronavirus, carries a child off a life raft during a rescue operation in the Aegean Sea, – Copyright Emrah Gurel/Copyright 2020 The Associated Press. All rights reserved

Shortly after reaching the Greek island of Lesbos, a group of Afghan migrants say, their hopes for a new life in Europe were cut short when Greek authorities rounded them up, mistreated them, shoved them into life rafts and abandoned them at sea.

Associated Press journalists on a Turkish government-organised coast guard ride-along were aboard the patrol boat that picked up the 37 migrants, including 18 children, from two orange life rafts in the Aegean Sea on Sept. 12. Two other media organisations on similar government-organised trips in the same week witnessed similar scenes.

“They took our phones and said a bus will come and take you to the camp,” Omid Hussain Nabizada said in Turkish. “But they took us and put us on a ship. They left us on the water in a very bad way on these boats.”

Turkey, which hosts about 4 million refugees, accuses Greece of large-scale pushbacks — summary deportations without access to asylum procedures, in violation of international law. It also accuses the European Union of turning a blind eye to what it says is a blatant abuse of human rights.

The Turkish coast guard says it rescued over 300 migrants “pushed back by Greek elements to Turkish waters” this month alone. Citing what they say are credible reports, international rights groups have called repeatedly for investigations.

Greece, which lies on the EU’s south-eastern border and has borne the brunt of migration flows from Turkey, denies the allegations and in turn accuses Ankara of weaponising migrants.

In March, Turkey made good on threats to send migrants to Europe, declaring its borders with the EU open. In what appeared to be a government-organised campaign, thousands headed to the Greek border, leading to scenes of chaos and violence. Turkey’s border with EU member Bulgaria was largely unaffected. Greece shut its frontier and controversially suspended asylum applications for a month.

Greece’s coast guard says Turkey’s coast guard frequently escorts migrant smuggling boats toward Greece, and has provided videos to back its claims. It says under a 2016 EU-Turkey deal to stem migration flows, Turkey has an obligation to stop people clandestinely entering Greece.

Greek coast guard spokesman Lt. Cmdr. Nikolaos Kokkalas said its patrols regularly detect boats and dinghies carrying migrants trying to enter Greece illegally, and “among them many times there are also inflatable rafts such as those described” by the AP.

The life rafts are standard safety equipment on recreational boats, designed to keep passengers safe if they must abandon ship. They generally have no means of propulsion or steering.

“It must be underlined that in most of the cases, the presence of the Turkish coast guard has been observed-ascertained near the dinghies incoming from the Turkish coast, but without it intervening, while in some cases the dinghies are clearly being accompanied by (Turkish coast guard) vessels,” Kokkalas said in a written response to an AP query.

Uneasy neighbours Greece and Turkey have been at loggerheads for decades over several territorial issues, and asylum-seekers have found themselves caught up in the geopolitical conflict.

Tension between the two countries rose dramatically this summer over eastern Mediterranean maritime boundaries, leading to fears of war.

Both sides deployed warships as Turkish survey ships prospected for gas in waters where Greece and Cyprus claim exclusive economic rights. EU leaders are to discuss imposing sanctions on Turkey for its actions, in an Oct. 1-2 summit. Turkey has repeated its threat to send migrants into the EU if sanctions are imposed.

The persistent allegations of pushbacks of migrants are the latest manifestations of these tensions.

Human Rights Watch has accused Greece of summarily returning migrants across land and sea borders with Turkey, citing interviews with asylum-seekers.

Other rights groups and refugee organizations, including the U.N. refugee agency, have repeatedly called on Greece to investigate what they say are credible reports and testimony of such expulsions occurring.

“UNHCR is particularly concerned about the increasing reports, since March 2020, of alleged informal returns by sea of persons who, according to their own attestations or those of third persons, have disembarked on Greek shores and have thereafter been towed back to sea,” the agency said in August.

UNHCR Assistant High Commissioner for Protection Gillian Triggs, reiterating the call for an investigation, said that “with our own eyes on Lesbos, it was quite clear no boats were coming through” recently.

Earlier this month, Greece’s Shipping Minister Giannis Plakiotakis said Greek authorities prevented more than 10,000 people from entering Greece by sea this year. He would not elaborate on how.

Former Migration Minister Ioannis Mouzalas pressed for details from the current minister, Notis Mitarachi, in parliament Sept. 21, saying this appeared to violate Greek and international law. He asked directly whether the government carries out pushbacks.

The four Afghans on the life rafts seen by AP said they reached Lesbos from Turkey’s western Canakkale province on the night of Sept. 11-12, and were caught by Greek law enforcement during daylight.

‘The Greek police did it to us’

One of them, Nabizada, said police hit him while forcing him into the raft.

“They didn’t say, ‘there are children, there are families, there are women.’ … People don’t do this to animals. The Greek police did it to us,” said the 22-year-old. He said he left Kabul in 2017 and crossed to Turkey via Iran, aiming for Europe.

Zohra Alizada, 14, said police took their phones and money, put them in the rafts and left. She was traveling with her parents and two siblings after living in Kars, in eastern Turkey, for over four years. She said the migrants called the Turkish coast guard for help.

Her father, Mohammad Reza Alizada, said Greek authorities inflated the rafts “and they threw us like animals inside.”

The AP was not able to independently verify their accounts.

The Turkish coast guard, clad in protective equipment against COVID-19, took them aboard after checking them for fever. Another Turkish coast guard vessel was already in the area when the patrol boat carrying the AP crew arrived.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu raised the allegations against Greece in an August news conference with his German counterpart.

He said Turkey has shown through government and media reports that Greece is pushing back refugees at sea, adding that “there have been numerous articles published.”

“How do sinking boats in the middle of the Aegean Sea or sending them to Turkey by pushbacks fit international rights and universal values?” Cavusoglu said.

Greece denies sinking smuggling boats. Kokkalas noted the Greek coast guard had rescued 3,150 migrants in about 100 incidents this year.

An independent Norway-based watchdog says it has documented at least 50 cases since March of migrants being put into life rafts and left adrift.

“They are not going into these life rafts willingly. They are forced,” said Tommy Olsen of the Aegean Boat Report, which monitors arrivals and rights abuses in the Aegean.

He said his group had no information about the rafts the AP saw, but that it was consistent with similar reports.

“Usually, you save people from life rafts,” Olsen said. “You don’t put them on life rafts and leave them.”

Επαναπροώθηση ΕΛ.ΑΣ-ΣΤΡΑΤΟΣ Έβρος 12/9/2020

• Date of incident: 12-9-2020

• Location: Evros/Meriç river

• Law enforcement involved: Greek police officers, Greek army officers

• Number of people pushed back: 25

• Nationalities: Pakistani, Maroccan, Syrian, Algerian

• How many had documents for sure: –

• Demographics (women, children, etc): families with women and children involved

• Method of expulsion: People were driven to Evros/ Meriç river and they were forced to cross the Greek/ Turkish border.

• Documenting organisation: Border Violence Monitoring (BVMN)

• Description: The respondent and his friend were apprehended at Diavata Camp and they were later transferred to two different police stations in Thessaloniki. The second one didn’t have a police signboard. They were detained in a cell with 12 other people for 24 hours. Then, they were transferred along with other 20 men in an army station where also families with women and children waited, and later, they were all forced to a place near the Greek-Turkish border. Then, they were beaten while forced to cross the river.

• Documents : https://www.borderviolence.eu/violence-reports/september-12-2020-2230-greek-turkish-border-near-uzunkopru/ 

12/09/2020

““THEY TOLD US WE DON’T HAVE FOOD FOR YOU””

Date and time: September 12, 2020 22:30

Location: Greek/Turkish border, near Uzunkopru

Coordinates: 41.34183, 26.622821

Pushback from: Greece

Pushback to: Turkey

Demographics: 25 person(s), age: unknown, from: Pakistan, Syria, Morocco, Algeria

Minors involved? Yes

Violence used: beating (with batons/hands/other), theft of personal belongings

Police involved: police in civilian clothes, Greek police in black uniforms, Greek military, small white Renault van, riot police bus, Greek military vans

Taken to a police station? yes

Treatment at police station or other place of detention: denial of access to toilets, denial of food/water

Was the intention to ask for asylum expressed? No

Reported by: Anonymous Partner

ORIGINAL REPORT

The respondent, a 24-year-old man from Morocco, and his friend, another Moroccan man, were apprehended at the Diavata camp, on September 11th 2020, after a fight broke between his friend and an Iraqi man in the camp.

The police, dressed in civilian clothing, came to the camp following the fight and apprehended the Moroccan man involved in the fight, and his friend, the respondent, who was not involved in the fight.

The respondent and his friend were handcuffed with regular metal handcuffs and driven in a civilian car to a local police station in Thessaloniki, 30 minutes away from the Diavata camp. It was the first time the respondent heard about the fight. They were detained in a cell for 40 minutes and then taken to another police station with the same civilian car and by the same civilian officers about 40 minutes away.

The second police station didn’t have a police signboard. There, the policemen in civilian clothing took the respondent and his friend’s phones, fingerprints, pictures and money away – 200 Euros. The respondent and his friend were detained in a cell with 12 other people for 24 hours. During that time, they had access to toilets and showers. The respondent signed a document in greek that he did not understand. He didn’t ask for an interpreter. The police officers gave them six euros per day, and someone came in the evening to sell sandwiches.

The respondent claims he saw a woman and her child in an isolated cell.

At the end of their stay in this cell, the police gave them back their clothes and backpacks but not their money.

The respondent, his friend, and about 15 people (all adult men) were then driven for an hour in a windowless small white Renault van to another place near Kavala, in the middle of a forest. They were then put on a big blue bus, in which another four people joined and were driven to a place that looked like an army station according to the respondent, near the Turkish border, three and a half hours away from Kavala. The respondent explained that the place was cold and dirty. He assumed it was an army station because the officers were in black military uniforms and the vans around looked like military vans.

At the alleged army station, men wearing black uniforms took the respondent’s shoes, clothes and backpack and threw them away. He was never given his belongings back. His request for food was denied. “They told us we don’t have food for you”, the respondent said.

He claims there were several families with women and children in the army station. He stayed in there for four hours, until he was driven to a place close to the Turkish border (41.341830, 26.622821). The van they drove in was a special van to drive on uneven roads like in forests. According to the respondent, it looked like an army van. He claims that women and children were in the army van with him. They were accompanied by three officers, wearing black uniforms and balaclavas.  The respondent assumed these men were police officers based on their black uniform.

In groups of 25 people, the three policemen walked them from the van to the river. The respondent and his group, which included women and children and people from Algeria, Syria, Morocco and Pakistan, were put into black and white dinghies allegedly driven by two Afghans, to cross the river to Turkey.

While crossing the river, the respondent claims he was beaten by the officers, with sticks and hands. The officers did not go in the dinghies with them.

As he arrived at the Turkish border, the respondent walked for two hours, to the village of Uzunkopru, where he slept in a squat before getting a train to Istanbul.