Greek coastguard in spotlight as details of migrant boat fate emerge

By Nathan Morley

The actions of the Greek coastguard are being blamed for the sinking of a boat last month carrying hundreds of migrants.

When details emerged of the fate of the Adriana, a trawler carrying migrants which sank off the coast of Greece on 14 June, it was described as one of the worst ever disasters in the Mediterranean.

Now, as more details continue to emerge during a probe into the disaster, dramatic and tragic stories are beginning to unfold. Some survivors claim that their boat capsized only after a disastrous decision by the Greek coastguard.

Elaborating, one Syrian survivor described how he and other passengers screamed “Stop!” when the Greek coastguard vessel attached a rope to the bow of the trawler and began to pull it while picking up speed.

Soon after, the migrant boat tilted form side-to-side before flipping upside down, and sinking.

Investigation

At the time, a Greek coastguard spokesman publicly denied claims that a rope had been attached to the Adriana. Then a day later, the coastguard admitted there had been a rope attached, but denied any attempt to tow the vessel.

In addition to the 78 people killed in the disaster, the United Nations estimates up to 500 people remain missing. Most of the 750 passengers were from Egypt, Syria and Pakistan.

Remarkably, a total of 104 survivors were recovered from the sea.

The United Nations Refugee Agency UNHCR say that so far this year, 72,778 refugees have arrived in Europe from the south, including 71,136 arrivals by sea to Italy, Greece, Spain, Malta and Cyprus.