The Turkish coast guard has recovered the bodies of two migrant women in the Aegean Sea while coming to the rescue of 43 more irregular migrants abandoned by Greek elements, the Interior Ministry announced early Thursday morning.
A coast guard boat was dispatched off the coast of Türkiye’s western province Aydın on Wednesday following reports that a group of irregular migrants was floating on a sinking rubber boat near the Kuşadası district.
Turkish authorities managed to rescue 43 of the migrants safe and sound, yet, discovered two other women had fallen off the boat and drowned while making the journey, the ministry informed.
One of the migrants was reportedly five months pregnant.
According to initial statements from the rescued migrants, they had been sailing for nearly five hours, since Dec. 20, when they were stopped on the night of Dec. 21 by the Greek coast guard near Samos island. The island is separated from mainland Türkiye by a mile-wide strait.
The Greek officers dismantled their engines and tugged them away with rope. The migrants recounted that while they were being dragged, water was leaking in the boat as the sea was rough and heavy.
One of the migrants said a second Greek coast guard team tried to push them back into Turkish territorial waters, which only caused the boat to leak more, raising panic and chaos on the boat.
“The boat was filled with water and some people drowned,” the migrant explained.
Another migrant said their boat reached land around 2 a.m. and the Greek coast guard “immediately” descended on their location.
“The sea was roaring in a storm and (Greek guards) kept making waves by circling our boat,” the migrant recalled. “Then, another, bigger Greek ship arrived. We thought they would treat us better but they were even worse. They nearly went over us with that large ship. We barely held onto the boat. Some of the women nearly fell into the sea. Especially the pregnant women were in terrible shape. They were really tired and immediately fainted.”
The migrant also informed authorities that there were two women, one with a 3-month-old and another with a 1.5-year-old baby, on board.
“We all could have died,” the migrant said. “One of my friends hasn’t been able to find his five-month pregnant wife. He’s devastated.”
Turkish authorities said an investigation has been launched into the deadly incident.
The Aegean Sea, the elongated arm of the Mediterranean between Türkiye and EU member Greece, is seen as an entry point for many refugees and migrants hoping to reach Western Europe. Hundreds of thousands of irregular migrants, who fall prey to smugglers while chasing the dream of a new life, strive to reach Greece undeterred by bad weather and hostile maritime conditions.
The International Organization for Migration has recorded nearly 2,000 migrants as dead or missing in the Mediterranean Sea this year alone.
On top of grappling with Aegean waves, these migrants come face-to-face with death because of the pushbacks and inhumane practices carried out by Greece in its campaign to “fight irregular migration.”
Human rights groups and media outlets have frequently reported on said illegal pushbacks and other human rights breaches by Greek authorities. Ankara and global rights groups have repeatedly condemned Greece’s illegal practice, saying it violates humanitarian values and international law by endangering the lives of vulnerable migrants.
Hundreds of people have died at sea as many boats carrying refugees sank or capsized. A report by Türkiye’s Ombudsman Institution said in July earlier this year that Greece has pushed back nearly 42,000 asylum-seekers since 2020.
Just this week, Turkish authorities saved hundreds more migrants Greek elements turned away. Türkiye has been conducting extensive rescue operations in its western waters to come to the rescue of refugees abandoned by Greece. Between Jan. 1 and Dec. 16 of this year, the Turkish Coast Guard Command’s Aegean Command Station has saved 47,498 irregular migrants in 1,550 separate cases across its areas of responsibility.
Despite in-depth investigations, scrutiny and evidence by the media and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), alongside abundant testimony from victims, Greek authorities have consistently denied the pushbacks. Greece's conservative government, elected in 2019, has vowed to make the country "less attractive" to migrants.
