Latest news with #HellenicCoastGuard
Middle East Eye
6 days ago
- Middle East Eye
Greek court charges 17 coastguards over deadly 2023 Pylos shipwreck
A naval court in Greece has charged 17 members of the Greek coast guard over the deadly Pylos shipwreck in 2023. The Adriana fishing boat, which departed Libya for Italy, sank on 14 June 2023 in international waters within the Greek search-and-rescue zone near the town of Pylos. At least 82 bodies were recovered from the disaster, though up to 650 were feared dead. Hundreds of people, including women and children, were missing after being trapped below deck. Only 104 of an estimated 750 passengers survived. Survivors of the shipwreck told media that a botched attempt by Greek coastguards to tow the vessel had caused it to capsize. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters The deputy prosecutor of the Piraeus Naval Court indicted 17 Hellenic Coast Guard members, including the captain of the LS-920 coastguard vessel. The captain faces charges of 'causing a shipwreck', 'dangerous interference of maritime transport' and 'failure to provide assistance'. Other crew members were charged with 'complicity' in acts committed by the captain. Reports by rights groups and watchdogs, based on survivors' testimonies, pointed to the role of the Hellenic Coast Guard in precipitating the wreck, by first delaying its rescue response and then attempting to tow the boat. Survivors told the BBC that the Greek vessel attached a rope to the fishing boat and moved off quickly, causing it to flip. They said that once the survivors had reached land, they were told to keep quiet about how events had unfolded. In February, leaked audio recordings revealed that Greek rescue coordinators instructed the captain of the Adriana fishing boat to tell an approaching ship that those on board did not want to go to Greece - contradicting the coastguard's account of the incident. The coastguard has maintained that the people aboard were not at risk and did not request assistance and insisted they wanted to go to Italy and not Greece. A joint legal team representing victims and survivors welcomed the decision by authorities to pursue charges. 'Almost two years after the Pylos shipwreck, the prosecution and referral to main investigation for felonies of 17 members of the Coast Guard, including senior officers of its leadership, constitutes a substantial and self-evident development in the course of vindication of the victims and the delivery of justice," the legal team said. The 17 men are set to be questioned in the coming weeks by the naval court's deputy prosecutor. The court will then decide whether a full trial will go ahead, or if the charges will be dismissed. The Greek government told the BBC that its coast guard fully respects human rights and has rescued over 250,000 people at sea in the past ten years.
Arab News
6 days ago
- General
- Arab News
Greek court issues charges over 2023 migrant boat disaster
LONDON: A Greek naval court has charged 17 coast guards over one of the Mediterranean's deadliest boat disasters, which killed up to 650 migrants. The overcrowded Adriana fishing vessel capsized and sank near Pylos off the Greek coast in June 2023. Survivors told the BBC that witnesses were silenced by Greek coast guards, who had caused the Adriana to capsize by trying to tow it. Greek authorities have consistently denied the claims. Piraeus Naval Court's deputy prosecutor found that 17 members of the Hellenic Coast Guard should face criminal charges over the disaster. One survivor told the BBC on Monday: 'It has taken us two years just for these charges to come, even though so many people witnessed what happened.' Among those facing charges is the captain of the LS-920, the coast guard ship that intercepted the Adriana. The captain is accused of 'causing a shipwreck,' leading to the deaths of 'at least 82 people.' That figure represents the number of bodies recovered from the shipwreck, but it is believed that up to 500 more people died, including many women and children who were below deck. Four other officials, including the then-chief of the coast guard and the supervisor of the National Search and Rescue Coordination Center in Piraeus, were charged with 'exposing others to danger.' The LS-920 captain was also charged with 'dangerous interference of maritime transport' and a 'failure to provide assistance.' The coast guard ship's crew were charged with 'simple complicity' in all the actions allegedly committed by the captain. The Adriana, which left Libya for Italy with about 750 people on board, had been monitored by the coast guard for about 15 hours before the disaster took place. Only 104 survivors have been recorded. The BBC conducted a lengthy investigation that challenged the Greek coast guard's account of the sinking. Last year, a Greek court threw out a case against nine Egyptians allegedly tied to the disaster, amid claims that they had been scapegoated by Greek authorities. Syrian refugee Ahmad described the events to the BBC and accused the Greek coast guard of negligence. 'They attached a rope from the left,' he said. 'Everyone moved to the right side of our boat to balance it. The Greek vessel moved off quickly, causing our boat to flip. They kept dragging it for quite a distance.' Once survivors were rescued, they were ordered to 'shut up' by the official in charge of questioning, Ahmad added. The survivors, he said, were told: 'You have survived death. Stop talking about the incident. Don't ask more questions about it.' Ahmad said he is 'very happy' that the coast guards 'are eventually being held accountable for all that they have committed, but until I see them in prison nothing has been done yet.'
The Journal
7 days ago
- The Journal
Greek Coast Guard members charged over sinking of the Adriana that killed hundreds in 2023
SEVENTEEN MEMBERS OF Greece's Hellenic Coast Guard have been charged over their response to the deadliest Mediterranean migrant shipwreck in decades. The Adriana, a ship destined for Italy carrying more than 750 people, sank in Greece's rescue zone in international waters in June 2023. Only 82 bodies were recovered and 104 people survived. The boat was sailing from Tobruk in Libya. As well as Syrians and Palestinians, it was carrying nearly 350 Pakistanis, according to the Pakistani government. Survivors said the coastguard failed to respond adequately when the rusty and overloaded trawler went down that night. According to the survivors, the Coast Guard eventually responded and while towing the vessel, it finally capsized and sank 47 nautical miles off the coast of Pylos. Greek authorities have always denied the claims against them but the deputy prosecutor of the Piraeus Naval Court has found that the 17 members of the Hellenic Coast Guard should face criminal charges. One of them is the captain of a coastguard ship. He is charged with 'causing a shipwreck', leading to the deaths of 'at least 82 people'. The head of the Coast Guard at the time and the supervisor of the National Search and Rescue Coordination Centre are also among four officials charged with 'exposing others to danger'. The captain of the Coast Guard ship, the LS-920, is also charged with 'dangerous interference of maritime transport' as well as a 'failure to provide assistance' to the boat. The crew of the Coast Guard ship are charged for 'simple complicity' in all the acts allegedly committed by the captain. Six rights groups in a statement last week called the decision to prosecute 'a significant and obvious development in the path towards justice and accountability for the victims'. Advertisement Among the 104 survivors, dozens filed a group criminal complaint, alleging the coastguard took hours to mount a response when the boat was in trouble, despite warnings from EU border agency Frontex and the NGO Alarm Phone. The Coast Guard has said it communicated with people on board the Adriana who 'refused any help', rendering any rescue operation in high seas risky. But lawyers for the survivors have said the Coast Guard chose to dispatch just a patrol boat from Crete – and not a larger rescue tugboat stationed closer by at the port of Gytheion in the Peloponnese region. The patrol boat's voyage data recorder was damaged and was only repaired two months after the accident, they said – nor was there any video footage from the patrol boat. Separately, the EU's border enforcement agency, Frontex, opened an investigation in April into multiple alleged human rights violations by Greece in dealing with irregular immigration. The agency said it is reviewing 12 alleged serious incidents that mostly occurred in 2024. In a January ruling, the European Court of Human Rights described Greece's use of summary expulsions of asylum seekers, known as pushbacks, as systematic. UN experts have also urged Greece to ensure its border policies are transparent and impartial. The central Mediterranean is the world's deadliest migration route, where more than 25,000 people have died or gone missing since 2014. With reporting from AFP Need more clarity and context on how migration is being discussed in Ireland? Check out our FactCheck Knowledge Bank for essential reads and guides to finding good information online. Visit Knowledge Bank Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. Learn More Support The Journal
Saudi Gazette
7 days ago
- Saudi Gazette
Greek coastguards charged over 2023 migrant shipwreck
ATHENS — A naval court in Greece has charged 17 coastguards over the deadliest migrant boat disaster in the Mediterranean Sea for a decade. Up to 650 people were feared to have drowned when the overcrowded Adriana fishing vessel sank near Pylos, off the Greek coast, in the early hours of 14 June 2023. Survivors later told the BBC that Greek coastguards had caused their boat to capsize in a botched attempt to tow it and then silenced witnesses. "It has taken us two years just for these charges to come, even though so many people witnessed what happened," one of the survivors, a Syrian man we called Ahmad, said on Monday. The Greek authorities have always denied the claims against them. The Deputy Prosecutor of the Piraeus Naval Court has found that 17 members of the Hellenic Coast Guard should face criminal charges. Among them is the captain of the coastguard ship, the LS-920, who is charged with "causing a shipwreck", leading to the deaths of "at least 82 people". This corresponds to the number of bodies recovered, although it is thought as many as an additional 500 people drowned, including women and children who were all below deck. The disaster occurred in international waters — but within Greece's rescue zone. The then-Chief of the Coast Guard and the Supervisor of the National Search and Rescue Coordination Centre in Piraeus are among four officials charged with "exposing others to danger". The captain of the LS-920 is also charged with "dangerous interference of maritime transport" as well as a "failure to provide assistance" to the migrant boat. The crew of the ship are charged for "simple complicity" in all the acts allegedly committed by the captain. A coastguard ship had been monitoring the Adriana for 15 hours before it sank. It had left Libya for Italy with an estimated 750 people on board. Only 104 of them are known to have survived. We've been investigating since the day of the disaster and our series of findings has cast serious doubt on the official Greek version of events. Within a week, we obtained shipping data which challenged the claim the migrant boat had not been in trouble and so did not need to be rescued. A month later, survivors told us the coastguard had caused their boat to sink in a disastrous effort to tow it and then forced witnessed to stay silent. Last year, a case against nine Egyptians was thrown out, amid claims they had been scapegoated by the Greek authorities. Earlier this year, audio recordings emerged which further challenged the official Greek version of events. We first met Syrian refugees, who we called Ahmad and Musaab to protect their identities, a month after the disaster. They said they each paid $4,500 (£3,480) for a spot on the boat. Ahmad's younger brother was also on board and did not survive. Musaab described to us the moment when — he alleged — the Greek coastguards caused their boat to sink. "They attached a rope from the left," he said. "Everyone moved to the right side of our boat to balance it. The Greek vessel moved off quickly causing our boat to flip. They kept dragging it for quite a distance." The men claimed that once on land, in the port of Kalamata, the coastguard told survivors to "shut up" when they started to talk about how the Greek authorities had caused the disaster. "When people replied by saying the Greek coastguard was the cause, the official in charge of the questioning asked the interpreter to tell the interviewee to stop talking," Ahmad said. He said officials shouted: "You have survived death. Stop talking about the incident Don't ask more questions about it." Today Ahmad — who is now living in Germany — said he felt vindicated by the charges that had been brought. "I'm very happy they are eventually being held accountable for all that they have committed, but until I see them in prison nothing has been done yet," he said. "To be honest, the Greek legal system is very unreliable." The joint legal team representing survivors and victims of the disaster said the decision to pursue a case against the 17 coastguards was a big step forward towards justice being done. In a statement it said: "Almost two years after the Pylos shipwreck, the prosecution and referral to main investigation for felonies of 17 members of the Coast Guard, including senior officers of its leadership, constitutes a substantial and self-evident development in the course of vindication of the victims and the delivery of justice." It is understood the 17 men who have now been charged will be questioned in the coming weeks by the Deputy Prosecutor of the Piraeus Naval Court. The court will then decide whether to send them to full trial or dismiss the charges. It is not immediately clear what punishment the coastguards could receive if found guilty. Greece has previously told the BBC its Coast Guard fully respects human rights and has rescued more than 250,000 people at sea in the past decade. — BBC
Yahoo
26-05-2025
- Yahoo
Greek coastguards charged over 2023 migrant shipwreck
A naval court in Greece has charged 17 coastguards over the deadliest migrant boat disaster in the Mediterranean Sea for a decade. Up to 650 people were feared to have drowned when the overcrowded Adriana fishing vessel sank near Pylos, off the Greek coast, in the early hours of 14 June 2023. Survivors later told the BBC that Greek coastguards had caused their boat to capsize in a botched attempt to tow it and then silenced witnesses. "It has taken us two years just for these charges to come, even though so many people witnessed what happened," one of the survivors, a Syrian man we called Ahmad, said on Monday. The Greek authorities have always denied the claims against them. The Deputy Prosecutor of the Piraeus Naval Court has found that 17 members of the Hellenic Coast Guard should face criminal charges. Among them is the captain of the coastguard ship, the LS-920, who is charged with "causing a shipwreck", leading to the deaths of "at least 82 people". This corresponds to the number of bodies recovered, although it is thought as many as an additional 500 people drowned, including women and children who were all below deck. The disaster occurred in international waters - but within Greece's rescue zone. The then-Chief of the Coast Guard and the Supervisor of the National Search and Rescue Coordination Centre in Piraeus are among four officials charged with "exposing others to danger". The captain of the LS-920 is also charged with "dangerous interference of maritime transport" as well as a "failure to provide assistance" to the migrant boat. The crew of the ship are charged for "simple complicity" in all the acts allegedly committed by the captain. A coastguard ship had been monitoring the Adriana for 15 hours before it sank. It had left Libya for Italy with an estimated 750 people on board. Only 104 of them are known to have survived. We've been investigating since the day of the disaster and our series of findings has cast serious doubt on the official Greek version of events. Within a week, we obtained shipping data which challenged the claim the migrant boat had not in trouble and so did not need to be rescued. A month later, survivors told us the coastguard had caused their boat to sink in a disastrous effort to tow it and then forced witnessed to stay silent. Last year, a case against nine Egyptians was thrown out, amid claims they had been scapegoated by the Greek authorities. Earlier this year, audio recordings emerged which further challenged the official Greek version of events. We first met Syrian refugees, who we called Ahmad and Musaab to protect their identities, a month after the disaster. They said they each paid $4,500 (£3,480) for a spot on the boat. Ahmad's younger brother was also on board and did not survive. Musaab described to us the moment when - he alleged - the Greek coastguards caused their boat to sink. "They attached a rope from the left," he said. "Everyone moved to the right side of our boat to balance it. The Greek vessel moved off quickly causing our boat to flip. They kept dragging it for quite a distance." The men claimed that once on land, in the port of Kalamata, the coastguard told survivors to "shut up" when they started to talk about how the Greek authorities had caused the disaster. "When people replied by saying the Greek coastguard was the cause, the official in charge of the questioning asked the interpreter to tell the interviewee to stop talking," Ahmad said. He said officials shouted: "You have survived death. Stop talking about the incident Don't ask more questions about it." Today Ahmad - who is now living in Germany - said he felt vindicated by the charges that had been brought. "I'm very happy they are eventually being held accountable for all that they have committed, but until I see them in prison nothing has been done yet," he said. "To be honest, the Greek legal system is very unreliable." The joint legal team representing survivors and victims of the disaster said the decision to pursue a case against the 17 coastguards was a big step forward towards justice being done. In a statement it said: "Almost two years after the Pylos shipwreck, the prosecution and referral to main investigation for felonies of 17 members of the Coast Guard, including senior officers of its leadership, constitutes a substantial and self-evident development in the course of vindication of the victims and the delivery of justice." It is understood the 17 men who have now been charged will be questioned in the coming weeks by the Deputy Prosecutor of the Piraeus Naval Court. The court will then decide whether to send them to full trial or dismiss the charges. It is not immediately clear what punishment the coastguards could receive if found guilty. Greece has previously told the BBC its Coast Guard fully respects human rights and has rescued more than 250,000 people at sea in the past decade.
