A Greek coast guard inflatable craft reportedly reached as far as the Bay of Akyarlar – near Bodrum (Halicarnassus) – along Turkey’s western coast this week in pursuit of another smaller inflatable reportedly piloted by a purported migrant smuggler.
Videos posted on various Turkish-language social media on Friday show the scene, with the fleeing vessel reaching the shoreline and the other more official looking craft then reversing course and speeding back into the open sea.
A couple of Turkish coast guard patrol boats subsequently arrive in the bay and gendarmerie units are notified on shore. According to sozcu.com, the beached craft was towed to the nearby small port of Turgutreis.
A subsequent announcement by the Turkish coast guard said one unidentified man, believed to be a migrant smuggler, fled into a wooded area after abandoning the inflatable craft on shore, while adding that the crew of the Greek coast immediately returned to their territorial waters.
Migrant smugglers operating from Turkey’s western coast in the Aegean have landed tens of thousands of third country nationals onto Greek territory, the aim usually being to either continue undetected to other preferred EU destinations or or in a bid to achieve asylum status.
Akyarlar’da Skandal Görüntüler!..
Bodrum’un Akyarlar Mahallesi önlerinde, Yunan Sahil Güvenliğine ait olduğu ifade edilen botla, başka bir bot arasında yaşanan kovalamaca, vatandaşlarca görüntülendi. Görüntülerde Yunan Sahil Güvenlik botunun karasularımızı ihlal ederek Akçabük… pic.twitter.com/VxlYj2CqCz
— Bodrum Kent Tv (@BodrumKentTv) September 20, 2024
