Aegean Boat Report

A leading international medical charity alleged Thursday that testimony from dozens of migrants over the past two years points to a "recurring practice" of secret, illegal and often brutal deportations back to Turkey from two eastern Greek islands.

The Turkish Coast Guard has saved more than 100 irregular migrants pushed back by Greek authorities off the Çeşme, Menderes and Foça districts in the Aegean province of İzmir.

According to a statement from the Coast Guard, the first group, consisting of some 76 people, was saved on April 22. Another group of 32 people was rescued the day after.

A U.K. parliamentary committee on Dec. 1 criticized government plans to deter migrants and refugees from trying to reach Britain in small boats, saying the measures would endanger lives without stopping dangerous journeys across the English Channel like the one that killed 27 people last week.

Greek and Turkish sources say interior minister told Greece’s Mitarachi that pushbacks in the Aegean must end