Greece-Athens-January 8, 2023

In the context of the fight against illegal immigration

The Greek minister of Civil Protection stated that his country was able to arrest about 1,300 suspected smugglers over the course of 2022 along the Evros border river with Turkey, in addition to preventing about 256 thousand migrants from crossing the river.

Greece's Minister of civil protection, Takis theodorikakos, said that border guards have arrested about 1,300 suspected smugglers along the Evros River, which forms the natural border with Turkey, over the course of 2022.

Theodorikakos added in a statement to "Sky" radio that during the same period, about 256 thousand migrants were prevented from crossing the river, known as Evros in Greece (and merezh in Turkey, and Maritsa in Bulgarian).

The infiltrators aimed to cross from Turkey to Greece, that is, to within the borders of the European Union. Human rights organizations accuse Athens of illegally returning to Turkey people seeking a better future in Europe.

Activists say the EU is turning a blind eye to what Athens is doing. On the other hand, Greece accuses Ankara of pushing migrants "forward", that is, to cross the border, which contradicts the so-called push-back.

Athens says the Turkish authorities are offering migrants the option of returning to Syria or other countries or entering Greece illegally. Although Athens has strict protection measures by land and sea. About 18,800 people were able to enter Greece in 2022, according to the UN refugee agency, compared to 9,157 in 2021.