Spiegel International (13 October 2022)

By Giorgos CHRISTIDES and Steffen LÜDKE

The EU border agency Frontex has sought to cover up human rights violations for several years, but an investigation by the European anti-fraud office OLAF has exposed the treatment of refugees at Europe's frontiers. DER SPIEGEL is publishing the report in its entirety.

The report is composed of 20 witness interviews, includes months of investigative work and fills more than 120 pages: The European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) has been thorough. Investigators searched the offices belonging to the leadership team of then-Frontex head Fabrice Leggeri and they scoured WhatsApp messages and emails.

The OLAF report led to Leggeri's resignation in spring 2022. But what the investigators have uncovered goes far beyond questions of individual liability. Even though it wasn’t the main focus of the investigation, the report relentlessly exposes how Greek border guards in the Aegean Sea abandon refugees at sea on inflatable life rafts to prevent them from exercising their right to apply for asylum.

To read the rest of the article, please click: https://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/why-der-spiegel-is-publishing-the-eu-investigative-report-on-pushbacks-a-5218398a-5c1e-414e-a477-b26515353fce