Türkiye rescues nearly 100 refugees and migrants pushed back by Greece

Türkiye has rescued 96 irregular refugees and migrants in separate incidents in an Aegean province, the Coast Guard Command said.

Fifty refugees and migrants on two lifeboats off Mugla's Datca district were saved after being pushed into Turkish territorial waters by Greek forces, the coast guard said in a statement on Wednesday.

Separately, 46 refugees and migrants pushed into Turkish territorial waters by Greek forces were rescued off the coast of Dalaman district, it said.

The migrants were taken to the provincial migration management directorate.

Türkiye and global rights groups have repeatedly condemned Greece's illegal practice of pushing back asylum seekers, saying it violates humanitarian values and international law by endangering the lives of vulnerable migrants, including women and children.

Türkiye has been a key country in the transit point for irregular refugees and migrants wanting to cross into Europe to start new lives, especially those fleeing war and persecution.

Last year, a report by the European Union's anti-fraud watchdog into the EU border agency Frontex concluded that Frontex employees were involved in covering up the illegal pushbacks of refugees and migrants from Greece to Türkiye in violation of their "fundamental rights."

The report punctured Greece's long-standing denial of reports, especially by the UN and Türkiye, that it has been pushing migrants out of its waters using violent, inhumane methods.

The European Anti-Fraud Office report detailed how pushback accusations and evidence of them were mishandled, often not reported or not investigated by the EU border agency Frontex, in collaboration with the Greek government.