On 3 April 2025, almost a year ago, Lesvos woke up to the news of another shipwreck and an ongoing rescue operation in the area of Skala Sikamnia, in the north of the island. That day, seven people were killed (three women, three children and a man) and a child is still missing, trying to reach the island of Lesvos.
While the initial information was unclear, it became apparent after a few hours that the Hellenic Coast Guard was involved. Survivors began to recount how their boat had been destabilized and capsized by the Hellenic Coast Guard vessel, and how the Coast Guard officers had done nothing for several minutes while people were drowning.
“If they had helped, no one would’ve died” Sadeji, one of the survivors, said in an interview for Reuters
For years, systematic violent practices by the Hellenic Coast Guard at sea have led to shipwrecks and cost dozens of lives. Less than a month ago, 15 people were killed off the coast of Chios when a Hellenic Coast Guard vessel rammed their boat just metres from the shore. In both cases, people were arrested immediately after being rescued on suspicion of being “smugglers”, and were also charged with causing the shipwreck and endangering lives. A revealing testimony by a former Coast Guard Captain confirms what survivors of such incidents and human rights organisations have been recording for years. This is a systematic practice and the cases that we learn about are only a few among many more that will remain unknown.
Right after the rescue operation M.H., a passenger himself, was arrested and charged for the shipwreck and the deaths of 8 people. Among them were his wife and his youngest child. He was immediately transferred to prison in Chios just after his interrogation by the prosecutor, while he was trying to find out the fate of his family. His oldest child, a five-year-old girl, had to stay in state custody. It was only after almost two months that he was eventually released on bail and reunited with his child, thanks to the legal support he received through two human rights organisations.
On Thursday 5 March 2026 the trial of M.H. will take place in Mytilene. This is another case that criminalises a victim of the European border regime: a man who lost his loved ones in a shipwreck caused by the Hellenic Coast Guard.
We demand:
- The acquittal of M.H.,
- The independent and thorough investigation of the real incidents of the shipwreck,
- The accountability of those truly responsible for the shipwreck and the people that lost their lives.
