An official from the Greek coast guard said the complaint came from one of the 23 rescued migrants. The coast guard alleged the boat was packed with people, leading it to capsize.
Many of the open cases are related to the alleged forced removals of thousands of people by Greek migration officials at land borders and at sea. The practice, known as pushback, is illegal under the United Nations Refugee Convention and international law. In January, the European Court of Human Rights found Greek authorities guilty of conducting systematic pushbacks of migrants and of violating human rights law in the process.
(Frontex itself faced allegations of misconduct in its handling of migrants and using pushback tactics in 2022, leading to the resignation of its chief.)
In June 2023, hundreds of migrants died at sea when a fishing boat sank off the coast of Greece’s southern peninsula while trying to reach Europe from Libya. An independent investigation by the Greek Ombudsman recommended disciplinary action for eight Hellenic coast guards involved in the incident.
Since Europe’s so-called migration crisis, when a million asylum seekers, mostly Syrian, made their way to Europe’s borders in 2015 in search of respite from civil wars, famine and conflict, the bloc has hardened its stance on migration. Most recently, the EU has drawn up a list of seven countries it deemed to be safe for people to return to, making the asylum application process more difficult for nationals of those countries.
“The humanitarian work of the Greek coast guard is unquestionable and that is precisely why it is widely recognized over time,” Hellenic Coast Guard Press Officer Nikolaos Alexiou told POLITICO.