European Union lawmakers on Wednesday withheld approval on the EU Border and Coast Guard Agency's (Frontex) budget over "illegal pushbacks of migrants" as they signed off on the bloc's budget for 2020, a week after the agency head resigned following the Frontex's involvement in pushback incidents toward Turkey in the Aegean Sea was revealed.

With 492 votes in favor, 145 against and eight abstentions, the EU lawmakers adopted a resolution explaining their decision.

In a statement, they named the EU anti-fraud watchdog OLAF's ongoing investigation into "fundamental rights incidents, including migrant pushbacks," as well as Frontex's "failure to fulfill the conditions" set by the European Parliament last year.

"Frontex operates in challenging circumstances and with its enhanced role comes the need for effective management and greater accountability," said Czech EU lawmaker Tomas Zdechovsky.

He added that the European Parliament decided to postpone the discharge of the Frontex budget until autumn because they did not have enough information on the results of OLAF's investigation.

Frontex director Fabrice Leggeri resigned last week.

The decision came after a joint investigation by prestigious European media outlets revealed that despite public denial, Frontex was involved in illegal pushbacks of asylum-seekers in the Aegean Sea.

OLAF is also expected soon to publish its report on the misgivings around the management of Frontex, while it has already drafted another report on the EU agency's involvement in illegal pushbacks.

Since 2015, human rights organizations and leading media outlets have frequently reported illegal pushbacks and other human rights breaches by Greek authorities, as well as Frontex's complicity in these acts violating the EU and international laws.

Pushbacks – forcing would-be refugees away from a border before they can reach a country and claim asylum – are considered violations of international refugee protection agreements, which say people shouldn’t be expelled or returned to a country where their life and safety might be in danger due to their race, religion, nationality or being members of a social or political group.

Last year, OLAF opened an investigation into Frontex over allegations of harassment, misconduct and migrant pushbacks.

German Interior Ministry spokesperson Maximilian Kall said replacing Leggeri offers the border agency an opportunity for a "fresh start."

"It offers the possibility of fully resolving the allegations, creating complete transparency and ensuring that all missions by Frontex occur in full conformity with European law," he said.

The commission said, "Frontex fulfills a critically important task to support member states, manage common European Union external borders and to uphold fundamental rights in doing so."

Leggeri had led Frontex since 2015, when well over 1 million people, many of them refugees fleeing war in Syria, entered the bloc.

According to a joint investigation last week by Lighthouse Reports, Der Spiegel, SRF Rundschau, Republik and Le Monde, Frontex has been involved in the pushbacks of at least 957 asylum-seekers in the Aegean Sea between March 2020 and September 2021.

European lawmakers have asked for part of Frontex's budget to be frozen until improvements are made, including setting up a mechanism for reporting serious incidents on the EU’s external borders and establishing a system for monitoring fundamental rights.

Birgit Sippel, a home affairs spokesperson for the Socialists and Democrats group at the European Parliament, called Leggeri's departure "a long overdue development, after years of constant allegations of pushbacks and violations of human rights."

A German nongovernmental organization (NGO), Pro Asyl, also welcomed Leggeri’s offer to step down.

"It’s scandalous that the director of an EU agency hid human rights abuses for years, manipulated evidence and lied to Parliament," said Pro Asyl's Europe leader, Karl Kopp.

Kopp called for independent oversight of Frontex to ensure that it acts in compliance with EU and international laws in the future. His organization said Frontex’s areas of responsibility should be reduced and its budget of about 750 million euros ($794.38 million) a year "massively cut."

Frontex has repeatedly been accused by aid groups of illegally returning migrants across EU borders – or of turning a blind eye when national authorities themselves carried out such "pushbacks."

Greece's land and sea borders with Turkey have been a major focus of such allegations.

In February, at least 19 irregular migrants were found frozen to death near the Turkish-Greek border after being pushed back to Turkey by Greece.

Turkish officials criticized Athens for the inhumane and degrading treatment of irregular migrants, saying those who were found dead had been stripped of their clothes and shoes by the Greek border guards. Greece denied any involvement.

Commenting on the incident, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan slammed the EU's border protection agency Frontex for cooperating with Greece and the bloc for turning a blind eye to the deaths of migrants.

Turkey and Greece have been key transit points for migrants aiming to cross into Europe, fleeing war and persecution to start new lives. The journey of hope for irregular migrants either ends in the blue waters of the Aegean or turns into a nightmare due to the inhumane practices of Greek coast guard units. In recent years, hundreds of thousands of asylum-seekers have made the short but perilous journey across the Aegean to reach Northern and Western Europe in search of a better life. Hundreds of people have died at sea as many boats carrying refugees often sink or capsize. The Turkish Coast Guard Command has rescued thousands of others.

Turkey and many international human rights groups have accused Greece of large-scale pushbacks and summary deportations without migrants being given access to asylum procedures, saying it violates humanitarian values and international law by endangering the lives of vulnerable migrants, including women and children. They also accuse the European Union of turning a blind eye to this blatant abuse of human rights.