Thomas Gutschker

Political correspondent for the European Union, NATO and the Benelux countries based in Brussels.

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Between March 2020 and September 2021, the EU border protection agency Frontex is said to have falsely declared and thereby covered up the illegal rejection of 957 migrants by the Greek coast guard in at least 22 cases.

This is claimed by a network of several European media, including the “Spiegel”.

On the basis of the EU Freedom of Information Act, the researchers were able to view the internal Frontex database in which operations are documented and compared this with reports, photos and videos of those affected.

While they suggest that the Greek coast guard stopped migrants in the Aegean Sea and then drove them back towards Turkey on the open sea in boats without a motor or life rafts, the incidents in the database were classified as "prevention of departure". departure".

This means that the Turkish coast guard would have intervened on its own and stopped migrants.

According to the “Spiegel” report, Frontex pointed out that it had no mandate to investigate the actions of the Greek authorities.

Internal investigation does not fully exonerate Frontex

The authority, headed by Fabrice Leggeri, a Frenchman, had already invoked this position when its board of directors was investigating several cases.

This investigation concluded that there was insufficient evidence that the agency had knowingly engaged in pushbacks.

However, the inspectors themselves pointed out that in two cases migrants had already reached Greek waters, which were classified as "preventing exit".

They classified this as "inconsistent".

Frontex's fundamental rights officer also called the classification "questionable".

A total of 222 incidents are to be listed in the "Jora" database (for Joint Operations Reporting Application) by September 2021 as "prevention of departure".

The researchers suspect that further pushbacks are hidden behind it.

Leggeri has been under political pressure since November 2020, when there were indications of pushbacks and possible involvement or knowledge of the authorities.

In December of that year, the European Anti-Fraud Office OLAF raided the offices of the Frontex Executive Director and his closest associate.

The investigation report is said to be more than 200 pages long, but has so far remained secret.

The European Parliament, which has launched its own investigation, has not been allowed to see it either.