Some 45 irregular migrants pushed back by Greece saved

İZMİR

The Turkish Coast Guard have saved 45 irregular migrants in two dinghies pushed back by Greek forces off the Çeşme district of the western province of İzmir.

After receiving information that Greece pushed migrants back, the coast guard officials moved to the Karaada region to rescue them on July 21.

The migrants were then delivered to the provincial immigration office.

Greece has pushed back nearly 42,000 asylum seekers since 2020, according to a new report published by Türkiye’s Ombudsman Institution.

According to the report, titled “Pushbacks and Drowning Human Rights in the Aegean Sea,” exposing the violation of international immigration law by Greece, Greek forces pushed back a total of 41,523 asylum seekers between 2020 and May 31, 2022.

“Some 98 percent of the pushbacks involved torture and ill-treatment, and 88 percent of the 8,000 asylum seekers who came to the Greek border were beaten,” the report said.