Greek coast guard dumps 40 illegal immigrants in Turkish waters; 6 dead
Güncelleme Tarihi:
The latest in a string of episodes involving rough treatment of incoming illegal immigrants by Greek authorities occured two night ago off the coastline of Izmir, when a group of 40 illegal immigrants from all over the Middle East and North Africa were thrown into the sea by a Greek coast guard boat.
Turkish villagers living outside of Izmir by the coast were awoken by the screams of the men and women, who had been picked up by the Greek coast guard after trying to make their way onto the Greek island of Chios. After being handcuffed and put onto a Greek coast guard boat, the group was brought into Turkish waters, where they were dumped early in the morning straight into the sea. Turkish fishermen, working in concert with Izmir based gendarmes, rescued many of the 40 people, though 6 were confirmed dead from drowning, and 3 are still missing.Â
Speaking to the press in response to the recent interest in the Turkish media regarding Greek treatment of incoming illegal immigrants, Greek Foreign Ministry spokesman Yorgo Kumuchakos said "We expect a decisive display of willingness on Turkey's part to cooperate with us on the subject of illegal immigrants trying to enter Greece from Turkey....The EU places great importance on the fight against illegal immigration, and as it is, Greece is working hard on this subject, and as requested cooperation from Turkey on this subject. Unfortunately, I have to say that the response from Turkey has not been satisfying."