A 56-year-old border guard was shot in the lower abdominal area on Saturday afternoon during an operation to prevent a group of illegal migrants from entering Greek territory from Turkey, the most serious incident reported on the specific frontier since 2022.
Gunfire erupted from the Turkish side of the border along the northern part of Evros Prefecture, in northeast Thrace province, and at a point on the frontier not separated by the Evros (Maritsa) River.
According to the latest reports on Sunday, the police border guard was out of danger after surgery at a local Evros area hospital after being hit by a single penetrating round.
Doctors at a hospital in the city of Didimotycho said that had the trauma been a mere two millimeters lower, the man’s lower intestine would have been hit.
The Evros (Maritsa) River separates Greece from Turkey in Thrace province, although a “bulge” of Turkish territory extends west of the river across from the Turkish city of Adrianople. This part of the frontier is a “favorite” spot for migrant smugglers attempting to ferry third country nationals into Greece, and by extension EU territory. The intent is usually to reach preferred destinations in central and western Europe, or if that’s impossible, to request asylum in Greece.
