EU Urges Greece to Investigate Allegations of Police-Led Migrant Pushbacks
The European Commission has called on Greece to thoroughly investigate serious allegations that its police forces utilized migrants to forcibly push back other asylum seekers toward the Turkish border. This directive follows a BBC report published on April 14, 2026, which cited internal documents and witness testimonies suggesting senior officials were aware of these practices. Commission spokesperson Magnus Brunner emphasized that while member states manage external borders, they must strictly adhere to EU law and fundamental rights obligations. The report alleges that recruited migrants assisted in operations involving abuse, theft, and beatings, a practice potentially ongoing since 2020. Despite previous inquiries highlighting insufficient safeguards against rights violations, pushback incidents in the Aegean Sea and along the Maritsa River continue to draw criticism from human rights organizations. The EU executive noted that border management, often supported by Frontex and EU funding, must always respect legal standards. This development adds to long-standing tensions regarding migration control methods at the Greece-Turkey border, where irregular migration flows remain a significant political and humanitarian challenge for the European Union.
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EU Urges Greece to Investigate Allegations of Police-Led Migrant Pushbacks
The European Commission has called on Greece to thoroughly investigate serious allegations that its police forces utilized migrants to forcibly push back other asylum seekers toward the Turkish border. This directive follows a BBC report published on April 14, 2026, which cited internal documents and witness testimonies suggesting senior officials were aware of these practices. Commission spokesperson Magnus Brunner emphasized that while member states manage external borders, they must strictly adhere to EU law and fundamental rights obligations. The report alleges that recruited migrants assisted in operations involving abuse, theft, and beatings, a practice potentially ongoing since 2020. Despite previous inquiries highlighting insufficient safeguards against rights violations, pushback incidents in the Aegean Sea and along the Maritsa River continue to draw criticism from human rights organizations. The EU executive noted that border management, often supported by Frontex and EU funding, must always respect legal standards. This development adds to long-standing tensions regarding migration control methods at the Greece-Turkey border, where irregular migration flows remain a significant political and humanitarian challenge for the European Union.
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