A journalistic investigation of the Pylos shipwreck, the migrant boat that sank in June 2023 claiming more than 500 lives, has revealed that the authorities in Greece were aware that the nine people who they imprisoned for almost a year on charges relating to one of the Mediterranean’s deadliest shipwreck were not members of a human trafficking network.
The boat was carrying an estimated 750 people, mainly from Syria, Pakistan, and Egypt. Only 104 survived; 82 bodies were recovered but only 58 were identified. More than 500 people remain missing, presumed dead.
Egypt informed Greece about the Pylos shipwreck suspects
According to the investigation by the NGO Solomon in co-operation with Arab Reporters for Investigative Journalism, El País, Die Tageszeitung and the New Humanitarian, the Egyptian authorities informed their Greek counterparts within a month that the nine Egyptian men who were arrested and imprisoned for their supposed involvement did not belong to the network that had organized the voyage.
The journalists revealed that the Greek authorities had initially been given a detailed list of the members of the network, which did not include the nine men, and then the results of Egyptian authorities’ investigations, which further confirmed it.
They also revealed that Egypt’s top official for combating migrant smuggling had informed the Egyptian Public Prosecutor’s Office that the ‘Pylos 9’—as the men came were dubbed by campaigners—were “victims” of the real smugglers, just like the other survivors.
Despite having this crucial information, the Greek authorities charged the men with people smuggling and kept them in pre-trial detention for almost a year until their case was dismissed a court in Kalamata in May 2024, the investigation claims.
Commenting on the outcome of the journalistic investigation, the FreePylos9 campaign on X posted: “As everyone knew from the beginning, the arrest and pre-trial detention of the ‘Pylos 9’ was an attempt to distract from the real culprits behind the state crime of Pylos.” “The crime of Pylos will not be forgotten,” it added.
Greece under fire for the Pylos shipwreck disaster
Greek authorities have been under fire from international organizations for their handling of the Pylos shipwreck.
On the first anniversary of the disaster Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International said that a Greek Naval Court’s investigation into the potential liability of the Hellenic Coast Guard for the shipwreck, which opened in June 2023, remains at the preliminary stage.
“Hundreds of families have been left in limbo, awaiting the truth on the fate of their loved ones,” said Adriana Tidona, migration researcher at Amnesty International.
“The Greek authorities must advance in their investigations into the potential liability of the coast guard in this incident to finally bring justice and closure to all those affected.”
Related: Are the 9 Egyptians Just Scapegoats of Greece’s Migrant Disaster?
