On 29 October 2025, Aegean Boat Report issued a public allegation concerning the pushback, on 25 October, of 34 Afghan nationals, including 11 children, from the maritime area of the Oinousses island complex to Turkish territorial waters, involving the participation of the Greek authorities.
According to the organisation: “In the early hours of October 25, a boat carrying 34 people, including 11 small children, departed from Karaburun, Turkey. Their destination was the small Greek island of Pasas, northeast of Chios.” The organisation added: “Deep inside Greek territorial waters, their boat was spotted and intercepted by a vessel from the Greek Coast Guard. Masked men in a RIB launched from the Coast Guard vessel threatened them at gunpoint, ordering everyone to hand over their belongings, bags, papers — and especially their phones.Those who didn’t obey immediately or protested were brutally beaten, regardless of gender. The engine was removed and thrown into the sea. A rope was attached to the bow, and they were towed back into Turkish waters.”
“It is almost incomprehensible that this could have been done by a European Coast Guard, officers sworn to protect life at sea — beating unarmed civilians seeking protection,” Aegean Boat Report commented.The organisation stated that it remained in contact with the refugees on the boat until their detection by the Turkish Coast Guard at 03:35 the same day.The allegation should be investigated by the Greek authorities and raises concerns of a violation of international law, as the pushback of refugees is prohibited under Article 33 of the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, also known as the Geneva Convention.
It is recalled that on 21 February 2022, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) issued a public statement expressing deep concern about the “increasing number of incidents of violence and serious human rights violations against refugees and migrants at various European borders, several of which have resulted in tragic loss of life.”
The statement made specific reference to Greece, expressing concern at the “recurrent and consistent reports coming from Greece’s land and sea borders with Turkey, where UNHCR has recorded almost 540 reported incidents of informal returns by Greece since the beginning of 2020. At sea, people report being left adrift in life rafts or sometimes even forced directly into the water, showing a callous lack of regard for human life. At least three people are reported to have died in such incidents since September 2021 in the Aegean Sea, including one in January.”
In a state governed by the rule of law, authorities must refrain from the unlawful pushbacks of refugees and migrants from their territory. Accordingly, and within the framework of international law, Greece must ensure effective international protection procedures that safeguard applicants fleeing war, authoritarian and undemocratic regimes, and other risks in their countries of origin.
As UNHCR has noted, European law requires that border surveillance measures be implemented in full compliance with human rights and refugee law, including the 1951 Convention, and that “states must uphold their commitments and respect fundamental human rights, such as the right to life and the right to asylum.”
However, the above allegation, which must be investigated by the Greek authorities, raises concerns of a violation of international law and Article 33 of the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, which prohibits pushbacks.
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