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A6 WORLD NEWS
Friday 3 November 2023

Charity says migrant testimonies point to a recurring practice of

illegal deportations from Greece

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — A grants arriving from Turkey,
leading international medi- are the only Greek islands
cal charity alleged Thurs- where Doctors Without Bor-
day that testimony from ders is active.
dozens of migrants over As a result, according to
the past two years points the group’s report, migrants
to a “recurring practice” are turning to alternative,
of secret, illegal and often longer voyages that pose
brutal deportations back a greater risk of hardship or
to Turkey from two eastern death. There has been an
Greek islands. increase in recent years of
Doctors Without Borders yachts crammed with mi-
said in a new report that grants leaving Turkey and
the accounts it collected rounding southern Greece
said the forced returns to head for Italy.
were carried out by uni- Doctors Without Borders
formed officers or unknown said its report drew from
masked individuals. It did accounts by migrants be-
not refer to the nationality tween Aug. 2021 and July
of the officers mentioned in 2023. It didn’t cite any first-
the accounts. hand observation of push-
The report follows charges backs by its own teams, but
by charities, activists and said they had met indica-
Turkish authorities, who al- From Left to right Interim General Director of the Greek Section of MSF Achilleas Tzemos, tions of violence against
leged similar actions in International President of MSF Christos Christou, Greek journalist Panos Charitos, Head of Mission newly arrived migrants.
the Aegean Sea and at for MSF in Athens, Samos and Bulgaria Sonia Balleron, and, Head of Mission for MSF in Lesvos and It added that the discrep-
Greece’s northeastern the Balkans Duccio Staderini take part in a news conference organised by the Doctors Without ancy between the more
Borders, in Athens, on Thursday, Nov. 2, 2023.
land border with Turkey. Associated Press than 10,000 arrivals re-
Athens has strongly de- ported to MSF over the
nied such so-called “push- also those of the European its staff that two people in- teams” on Samos and the two-year period and the

backs,” and argues that Union, from mass illegal im- cluding a pregnant woman island of Lesbos, the hu- nearly 8,000 people actu-
its coast guard has saved migration. In March 2020, allegedly died off the island manitarian organization ally found “indicate(s) that
hundreds of thousands of Turkey opened its borders of Samos when their boat said. It added that “non- people unaccounted for
migrants from the Middle into the EU and actively en- was towed at high speed assistance (to migrants), by MSF … may have been
East and Africa who at- couraged migrants to cross toward Turkish waters. violence and pushbacks forcibly returned to Turkey.”
tempted to reach Greece into Greece. “As a medical and hu- have become part and The group said it held
by crossing in small boats Doctors Without Borders, manitarian organization, parcel of a system of bor- anonymous interviews with
from Turkey. which is also known by its we could not stay silent in der management” on the 56 people who claimed to
Greece says it needs to pro- French abbreviation MSF, the face of the exceptional two islands. have suffered illegal depor-
tect its borders, which are said Thursday that in one scale and severity of the Lesbos and Samos, both tations. q
case, migrants reported to violence reported to our key landing points for mi-

Rights groups report widespread war crimes across Africa’s Sahel

region with communities under siege

By CHINEDU ASADU groups are committing war increasingly fighting to ex- spot for violent extremism, country’s central and
Associated Press crimes against civilians in ert dominance and control with armed groups often northern regions for alleg-
ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — Se- Africa’s Sahel region, where resources in communities, taking advantage of little edly collaborating with
curity forces and armed extremists and rebels are according to new reports or no government and se- either side of the conflict,
from two rights groups. curity presence to target Human Rights Watch said
Civilians are increasingly helpless communities. in its report. Malian security
being killed, abducted or But the conflict has wors- forces were responsible for
abused, including in Burkina ened in recent months and at least 40 civilian deaths,
Faso, where jihadi groups analysts blame the trend nearly half of whom were
have fought for many on the absence of institu- children, the report said.
years, and Mali, where mili- tional reforms, failed peace “The targeted killing of ci-
tants and ethnic rebels are efforts as well as rampant vilians by Islamist armed
expanding their reach, Hu- coups by militaries in places groups and the Malian
man Rights Watch and Am- like Burkina Faso and Mali. army are war crimes that
nesty International said. The violence also includes should be thoroughly and
The Amnesty report was re- alleged war crimes, which impartially investigated,”
leased on Thursday, while rights groups say are often Ilaria Allegrozzi, senior Sahel
the HRW one came out on covered up. researcher at Human Rights
Tuesday. Spread across the In Mali, both the armed Watch, said in the report
Saga Saganla, 30, from Diawely, lies on his bed at Somine vast arid expanse south of forces and extremist reb- based on interviews with
Dolo hospital in Mopti, Mali, Friday June 24, 2022. the Sahara Desert, the Sa- els have killed and abused 40 people, including more
Associated Press hel region has been a hot numerous civilians in the than 30 witnesses.q