Watch The Med Alarm Phone Investigations – 17th of January 2024

Case name: 2024_01_17-EASTERN MED - 022
Situation: 35 people intercepted by the Hellenic Coast Guard near Chios, one person died as a result.

Status of WTM Investigation: Concluded

Place of Incident: Eastern Med

Summary of the Case: In the late evening of the 17th of January, Alarm Phone was contacted by a worried relative, alerting us to a group of 35 people in distress in Turkish waters near the Greek island Chios. The relative told us that their boat had sank after the Hellenic Coast Guard (HCG) had intercepted the group and hit the boat. We managed to establish direct contact to the boat eventually, and recieved an updated GPS position. We also heard people onboard screaming in distress. The group told us that 2 people had fallen into the water and that the boat was sinking.

We alerted the authorities, including the HCG and the Turkish Coast Guard (TCG) at 23:12 CET via Mail. At 23:46 CET, we managed to get in contact with the TCG by phone, who confirmed that they had dispatched a vessel to find the group.

After some time without contact to the group, we received a message from one of the people on board who told us that the TCG had saved one of the people who had fallen into the sea, but that the other person had died. The person reported that the group had wanted to get to the island of Chios but that the HCG had intercepted them and dismantled the engine in front of them. They told us that the group was now in Izmir where they had been taken by the TCG, who had insulted them in a very humiliating way after they had found them at sea.

We remain in mourning about another person dying as a result of the behaviour of the Hellenic Coast Guard and Europe's border policies. Open the borders now!