Masked men who abused refugees likely worked ‘in concert’ with Greece

New documents from EU border agency Frontex cast doubt on a Greek mayor’s claim that the incident was ‘fake news’.

Athens, Greece – Last summer, a shocking video of asylum seekers cable-tied and blindfolded in the back of a van on a Greek holiday island went viral online.

At the time, the veracity of the video was questioned and Theodosis Nikitaras, the mayor of Kos, filed a defamation case against the NGO that published it.

Now, new documents obtained from the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex) confirm the incident and pin the responsibility on individuals it describes as “likely working in concert” with Greek authorities.

The 44-second video was published by the Aegean Boat Report NGO on June 26, 2023, the same day the incident took place. Since then, it has been seen by more than 660,000 people on X.

The NGO, which regularly reports allegations of human rights abuses at Greece’s sea borders with Turkey, said it had received the video from the people inside the van.