Turkey blasts Greece's pushbacks of asylum seekers

By Mehmet Sah Yilmaz

ANKARA (AA) - A top Turkish diplomat on Tuesday denounced Greece's mistreatment of asylum seekers, calling it both “inhumane” and a breach of international law.

"Once again, we condemn Greece's inhumane pushing back [asylum seekers] to our border and the persecution of desperate immigrants," Deputy Foreign Minister Yavuz Selim Kiran said on Twitter, citing a news story from Monday: "Turkey rescues 54 asylum seekers in Aegean Sea who were illegally pushed back by Greece."

This mistreatment by Greece is "far from humanitarian values" and violates its international responsibilities, including the 1951 Geneva Convention and the Human Rights Convention, Kiran added.

Turkey has been a key transit point for asylum seekers aiming to cross into Europe to start new lives, especially those fleeing war and persecution.

Turkey and human rights groups have repeatedly condemned Greece's illegal practice of pushing back asylum seekers, saying it violates humanitarian values and international law by endangering the lives of vulnerable migrants, including women and children.