Türkiye releases damning footage of illegal Greek pushback of migrants

ISTANBUL (AA) – Türkiye on Saturday shared damning video evidence of Greece’s illegal pushbacks of irregular migrants.

“On September 9, 2022, a Turkish Navy UAV detected irregular migrants being transferred to an inflatable boat and pushed back towards Turkish territorial waters by a Greek Coast Guard boat off Bodrum,” the National Defense Ministry said on Twitter.

“The situation was immediately reported to the Turkish Coast Guard, which rescued the irregular migrants,” the ministry wrote in a post along with a 63-second video of the incident.

Ankara and global rights groups have repeatedly condemned Greece’s illegal practice of pushing asylum seekers back into Turkish waters and denying them entry to Greece, saying it violates humanitarian values and international law by endangering the lives of vulnerable migrants, including women and children.

Last month, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Turkish forces have saved the lives of 41,000 people left to die by Greece over the past two years.

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