The Adriana Shipwreck: Survivors Blame Greek Coastguard

On June 14th, 2023, after leaving Tobruk, Libya, The Adriana, a fishing boat that contained up to 750 passengers, suffered one of the deadliest shipwrecks ever.

The boat capsized in the Mediterranean Sea, in international waters inside Greece’s rescue zone, in the part known as the Ionian Sea.

It had a capacity of 400 people but was said to have carried about 750 individuals, with most from Pakistan, Syria, and Egypt.

Although 82 bodies were found, the UN estimates that more than 500 people died, including 100 women and children who were trapped in the hold.

Now, a phone call involving an officer from the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre (JRCC) in the port of Piraeus, close to the capital Athens, on audio recordings that the Greek website News247.gr has been discovered.

In the first call, which was made on June 13 at 18:50 local time (15:50 GMT), an officer is heard telling the man in charge of the migrant boat that a big red ship would be arriving shortly to deliver supplies.

The officer also told the captain that the migrants did not wish to travel to Greece, raising more questions about the country’s official story.

The second call, which happened 90 minutes later, confirmed the migrants shouting “Italia” when asked their destination, a detail to which the officer insisted be recorded.

The Coast Guard denied towing the ship, claiming it didn’t step in because the boat was headed to Italy and wasn’t in distress.

In contrast to the official story, ship movement data indicates that the Adriana was motionless for seven hours before capsizing, as survivors also claim the coastguards had compelled witnesses to remain silent after letting their overcrowded fishing boat capsize.

European Human Rights Official Urged Greek Authorities

A senior European Human Rights Official has urged the Greek authorities to confront allegations of carelessness in the shipwreck that claimed hundreds of migrants’ lives in 2023.

The human rights commissioner for the Council of Europe, Michael O’Flaherty, referenced recent findings by Greece’s Ombudsman (an Independent Authority sanctioned by the Constitution).

These findings concluded that Greek coast guard officers failed to prevent the deadly migrant shipwreck in the Mediterranean.

During the time of the allegations in June 2023, the government vigorously disputed the survivors’ claim that the Greek coast guard ignored the first distress calls before the ship capsized.

Andreas Pottakis, a member of the Greek Ombudsman, discovered alleged clear indications that senior coast guard personnel ignored the migrants’ immediate peril.

In a report made by O’Flaherty’s office, it was stated that “The Commissioner, who liaises closely with the Ombudsman, notes his important findings and encourages the authorities to take resolute action to ensure appropriate criminal and disciplinary accountability.”

The government, though, reiterated its unwavering trust in the coast guard’s work to safeguard Greece’s marine boundaries and conduct maritime rescue missions.

It contended that claims made by survivors “without any reliable documentation” had been unjustly accepted in the Ombudsman’s report.