Watch The Med Alarm Phone Investigations – 18th of August 2024
Case name: 2024_18_01-EASTERN MED - 025
Situation: 15 people pushed back to Turkey after reaching the Greek island of Ro
Status of WTM Investigation: Concluded
Place of Incident: Eastern Med
Summary of the Case:

In the night of the 18th of January, Alarm Phone was contacted by a concerned relative, who alerted us to a group of 15 people who landed on the Greek island of Ro. They were 13 men and 2 women. We established direct contact to the group who reported that there was 1 elderly person and 1 pregnant woman among them, and that some of them needed medical attention due to health problems. They were exhausted and had been stranded on the island for many hours. We alerted the authorities by email at 00:20 CET on the 19th of January. Then we called the local Greek authorities, who confirmed they received our alert but would not give more information about a rescue operation. We lost the contact with the group during the night. On the morning of the 19th, we learned from Turkish authorities that the people has been pushed back to Turkey. These people had wanted to apply for asylum in Greece, and they were in distress on the Greek territory. These illegal pushbacks are a violation of their human rights. We could not reach the people again but hope they are safe now, and hope that one day they get to see justice for what they have been through.