Greek police have been systematically using masked personnel described as "mercenaries" to conduct illegal pushbacks of asylum seekers at the Turkish border, according to a BBC investigation that exposes systematic violations of European Union asylum law by a member state.
The investigation, based on witness testimony, video evidence, and interviews with former security personnel, reveals that Greece has established a shadow operation using individuals without official identification to intercept migrants and forcibly return them to Turkey without due process—a practice that violates international refugee law and EU regulations.
Witnesses described armed men in unmarked vehicles wearing balaclavas who apprehend asylum seekers, confiscate their belongings, and transport them back across the border. The masked personnel do not identify themselves as police or immigration officials and make no attempt to process asylum claims, according to multiple testimonies gathered by the BBC.
"They came in the night, men with covered faces," said one Syrian asylum seeker who spoke on condition of anonymity. "They took our phones, our money, everything. Then they put us in a van and drove us back to Turkey. No questions, no paperwork. Just get out."
To understand today's headlines, we must look at yesterday's decisions. European migration policy has existed in a state of crisis since 2015, when more than a million asylum seekers arrived via Greece and the Balkans. The EU's response—increased border enforcement, deals with Turkey to prevent crossings—failed to address the fundamental tension between legal obligations to process asylum claims and political pressure to reduce arrivals. Greece, bearing disproportionate burden as a frontline state, has increasingly ignored legal requirements in favor of deterrence.
The use of masked, unidentified personnel represents a deliberate strategy to evade accountability. If individuals cannot prove who detained them or where, filing complaints becomes nearly impossible. This creates plausible deniability for Greek authorities, who can dismiss allegations as unverifiable.
European Commission officials have expressed concern about the findings but have taken limited action to enforce compliance. Brussels has the authority to initiate infringement proceedings against member states that violate EU law, but such procedures are lengthy and politically sensitive.
"The Commission is aware of reports regarding border procedures in Greece and is monitoring the situation," a spokesperson said in a statement that stopped short of condemning the practices or announcing investigations.
Human rights organizations have documented systematic pushbacks at Greek borders for years, compiling thousands of testimonies from asylum seekers who report being forcibly returned without access to legal process. The BBC investigation adds credible evidence of state-sponsored operations using irregular personnel—an escalation that raises questions about rule of law within the European Union.
"When EU member states employ masked mercenaries to violate refugee law, we are witnessing the normalization of practices that fundamentally contradict European values," said Iva Bacar, a researcher at Amnesty International's Greece office. "This is not border protection—it is systematic abuse."
Greek government officials have consistently denied conducting illegal pushbacks, characterizing such allegations as "unfounded propaganda." However, leaked European border agency reports and testimony from former Frontex personnel have corroborated accounts of systematic returns without due process.
The political dynamic within Europe provides little incentive for reform. While human rights organizations criticize the practices, public opinion in many EU countries supports stricter border enforcement. Politicians face electoral pressure to reduce immigration, making legal compliance a political liability rather than an asset.
For the asylum seekers caught in this system, the consequences are severe. Families fleeing war and persecution find themselves trapped between Turkey—which increasingly refuses to accept returns—and Greece, which refuses to process their claims. Some make multiple crossing attempts, facing violence and extortion at each iteration.
The EU's asylum system, designed to ensure protection for refugees while managing migration flows, has been systematically undermined by frontline states that prioritize deterrence over legal compliance. The use of masked personnel represents the logical endpoint of that trajectory: plausible deniability replacing rule of law, security forces without accountability enforcing borders without regard for human rights.
Whether European institutions will enforce their own regulations remains an open question. For now, the mask-wearing men at the Greek-Turkish border operate with impunity—emblematic of a migration regime where the law is optional and accountability extinct.
