Traffickers

A tragedy occurred on the night of Tuesday, 3 February 2026 off the coast of Mersinidi in Vrontados, eastern Chios, following a collision between a vessel of the Hellenic Coast Guard and a boat carrying refugees.

Throughout October, numerous deadly shipwrecks and violent maritime interceptions occurred near Lesvos and other Aegean islands. These incidents led to preventable deaths, people going missing, and survivors reaching the islands in a state of severe psychological distress.

The Mechanism for Recording Incidents of Informal Forced Returns (Recording Mechanism), established by the Greek National Commission for Human Rights (GNCHR) to strengthen objectivity and reliability in reporting incidents of informal forced returns from Greek territory, is releasing its 2024 Annual Report.