Ministry rejects BBC allegations on foreign border mercenaries
The Ministry of Citizen Protection has rejected a BBC report claiming that police in Greece have been recruiting migrants to violently push other migrants back across its land border with Turkiye.
Ministry sources told the state-run AMNA news agency that border protection is conducted in full compliance with international, EU and national law, with respect for fundamental rights and human dignity.
They also that authorities have repeatedly addressed similar claims in recent years, providing what they describe as “clarity and documentation.”
The same sources argued that such reports are largely based on testimonies and secondary material that cannot be independently verified, and said assessments often rely on the convergence of allegations rather than conclusive evidence.
According to the BBC, the findings are based on a wide range of evidence, including internal police documents which reportedly describe the recruitment of so-called “mercenaries” as being ordered and overseen by senior officers.
The investigation further claims that migrants have been subjected to serious abuses during these operations, including being stripped, robbed, beaten and, in some cases, sexually assaulted. The BBC reports that such individuals are alleged to have been unofficially employed at the border since at least 2020.
In the report, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said he was “totally unaware” of allegations regarding the use of migrants in pushback operations. He said that Greece was protecting its borders, and added that European leaders were clear they would not repeat past “mistakes” by allowing in a “massive influx” of migrants and refugees.
The BBC said its own investigation began last autumn after receiving video material allegedly showing migrants being mistreated by individuals described as mercenaries. The footage was provided by a smuggler who claimed to have fallen out with his associates.
The BBC states that it has not been able to independently verify the content, though it says it aligns with accounts gathered from other sources.
[AMNA, BBC]-Kathimerini
