30/10: Pushback of 27 people north of Rhodos

31.10.2022 / 12:15 / Eastern Med

Watch The Med Alarm Phone Investigations – 30th of October 2022

Case name: 2022_10_10_Eastern Med_1046

Situation: Pushback of 27 people north of Rhodos

Status of WTM Investigation: Concluded

Place of Incident: Eastern Mediterranean / Aegean Sea

Summary of the Case:

In the night to 30 October 2022 we got alerted by relatives to a boat in distress north of Rhodos. At 3:53 CET we were able to get in direct contact with the people, they reported to be about 30 people on board, including 12 children. They were drifting.

At 4:18 CET we alerted the Hellenic coastguard by email, at 4:21 CET we also called JRCC Piräus to inform them about the distress. They said they would investigate. At 4:26 CET we made an additional phonecall to RSC Rhodos. Afterwards we lost contact with the people on board.

At 10:57 CET we called RCC Piraeus again. They stated that they ”have negative results regarding this case”. They did not find any boat at the position and they adviced us to call the Turkish Coastguard.
At 11:04 CET we called RCC Ankara. They confirmed that there was one rescue at 9am local time after a pushback. They rescued a boat with 27 ppl (10 adults and 17 children). They would be brought to Marmaris.

We were not able to reestablish contact to the people and so we could not get a detailed testimony about this push-back.

Last update: 12:34 May 02, 2023

Credibility:

Border police patrols
While the exact location of patrols is of course constantly changing, this line indicates the approximate boundary routinely patrolled by border guards’ naval assets. In the open sea, it usually correspond to the outer extent of the contiguous zone, the area in which “State may exercise the control necessary to prevent infringement of its customs, fiscal, immigration or sanitary laws” (UNCLOS, art. 33). Data source: interviews with border police officials.
Coastal radars
Approximate radar beam range covered by coastal radars operating in the frame of national marine traffic monitoring systems. The actual beam depends from several different parameters (including the type of object to be detected). Data source: Finmeccanica.
Exclusive Economic Zone
Maritime area beyond and adjacent to the territorial sea in which the coastal state exercises sovereign rights for the purposes of exploring and exploiting, conserving and managing the natural resources, whether living or non-living, the seabed and its subsoil and the superjacent waters. Its breadth is 200 nautical miles from the straight baselines from which the territorial sea is measured (UNCLOS, Arts. 55, 56 and 57). Data source: Juan Luis Suárez de Vivero, Atlas of the European Seas and Oceans
Frontex operations
Frontex has, in the past few years, carried out several sea operations at the maritime borders of the EU. The blue shapes indicate the approximate extend of these operations. Data source: Migreurop Altas.
Mobile phone coverage
Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) network coverage. Data source: Collins Mobile Coverage.
Oil and gas platforms
Oil and gas platforms in the Mediterranean. Data source:
Search and Rescue Zone
An area of defined dimensions within which a given state is has the responsibility to co-ordinate Search and Rescue operations, i.e. the search for, and provision of aid to, persons, ships or other craft which are, or are feared to be, in distress or imminent danger. Data source: IMO availability of search and rescue (SAR) services - SAR.8/Circ.3, 17 June 2011.
Territorial Waters
A belt of sea (usually extending up to 12 nautical miles) upon which the sovereignty of a coastal State extends (UNCLOS, Art. 2). Data source: Juan Luis Suárez de Vivero, Atlas of the European Seas and Oceans