Amnesty International: Human Rights Abuses on Greek-Turkish Border

Amnesty International published a report on Greece’s practice of “pushing back” intercepted migrants to Turkey. In 2012, the Greek-Turkish border saw the highest number of irregular entries into the EU out of all the EU’s external borders. Many of those crossing the border are nationals from unstable countries like Afghanistan and Syria. Amnesty’s research shows that some, who are able to cross the border into Greece are sometimes pushed straight back to Turkey in violation of international law without the chance to apply for asylum in Greece. Under these push-backs, migrants are sometimes abandoned in the middle of the sea on unsafe vessels, or left on the Turkish side of the border with their hands tied. Those who are not pushed back are often detained in appalling conditions. This conduct goes beyond legitimate border control and constitutes serious human rights violations.

 Read the full text of the report on the Amnesty International website.

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