Leaked recordings challenge Greek account of deadly shipwreck

Leaked audio instructions by Greek rescue co-ordinators person formed further uncertainty connected Greece's authoritative mentation of events successful the hours earlier a migrant vessel sank on with up to 650 radical onboard.

The Adriana went down successful the aboriginal hours of 14 June 2023 successful planetary waters – but wrong Greece's rescue portion - aft leaving Libya days earlier.

Survivors aboriginal told the BBC that coastguards had caused their overcrowded sportfishing vessel to capsize in a botched effort to tow it and past forced witnesses to enactment silent.

The Greek coastguard denied these claims and maintains it did not effort to rescue those onboard due to the fact that they were not successful information and said they had voluntarily wanted to scope Italy, not Greece.

But successful a telephone telephone that's present emerged an unnamed antheral speaking from wrong a Greek rescue coordination centre is heard instructing the skipper of the migrant vessel to archer an approaching vessel that those onboard bash not privation to scope Greece.

The coastguard has not commented connected the audio but said it had handed implicit each disposable grounds to a Naval Court which is investigating the disaster.

The sinking was 1 of the worst-ever disasters known to person happened successful the Mediterranean Sea.

It is estimated the vessel was carrying up to 750 migrants erstwhile it acceptable disconnected from the larboard of Tobruk successful Libya astir a week earlier.

Eighty-two bodies were recovered, but the United Nations believes an further 500 radical - including 100 women and children who were successful the clasp of the vessel - whitethorn person died.

Audio recordings obtained by Greek website News247.gr uncover telephone calls involving the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre (JRCC) astatine the larboard of Piraeus, adjacent the superior Athens.

In the archetypal call, astatine 18:50 section clip (15:50 GMT) connected 13 June, an serviceman is heard explaining to the antheral piloting the migrant vessel that a ample reddish vas volition soon beryllium approaching to springiness supplies and that helium should explicate that the migrants bash not privation to scope Greece.

Officer 1:

• The vessel proceeding to you successful bid to springiness you fuel, h2o and food. And successful 1 hr we nonstop you a 2nd boat, OK?
• Tell skipper to large reddish vessel "We don't privation to spell Greece". OK?

The replies of the antheral captaining the migrant vessel are not heard.

In a 2nd call, 90 minutes later, astatine 22:10, a seemingly antithetic serviceman from the aforesaid coordination centre, speaks to the skipper of the Lucky Sailor (the "big reddish ship").

Officer 2:

Ok, captain, atrocious earlier I couldn't perceive you. I couldn't recognize what did you accidental to me. You told maine you gave them food, h2o and they told you that they don't privation to enactment successful Greece and they privation to spell to Italy, they don't privation thing else?

Lucky Sailor captain:

Yes due to the fact that I asked them by megaphone "Greece oregon Italia?" and everybody determination screaming Italia.

Officer 2:

Aah, ok, good everybody screaming that they don't privation Greece and they privation Italy?

Lucky Sailor captain:

Yes, yes, yes.

Officer 2:

Ok

Lucky Sailor captain:

They are each similar crowded people, precise crowded, afloat deck.

Officer 2:

Ok, captain. So you person finished with the supplies?

Lucky Sailor captain:

Yes, sir, yes.

Officer 2:

Captain, I privation this, I privation this to constitute it successful your logbook. The span logbook.

Lucky Sailor captain:

Yes ok, we volition constitute it.

Officer 2:

Ok?

Lucky Sailor captain:

Yes

Officer 2:

I privation you to constitute it astir that they don't privation to enactment successful Greece and they privation to spell to Italy. They privation thing from Greece and they privation to spell to Italy.

Lucky Sailor captain:

Ok, yes, yes.

Another vessel, the Faithful Warrior, besides gave immoderate supplies to the migrant vessel but nary further conversations betwixt its skipper and the Greek authorities person emerged.

The Greek coastguard did not remark connected the contents of the conversations but told the BBC it had submitted "all the worldly it had successful its possession, including the audio recordings and the diaries of events" to the Maritime Court Prosecutor's Office, which is investigating.

It said it had rescued much than a 4th of a cardinal migrants successful information astatine oversea successful the past decennary and arrested much than a 1000 smugglers, and that its humanitarian enactment had been recognised internationally.

Our BBC probe successful the contiguous days aft the sinking challenged the Greek authorities' explanation for the disaster.

Analysis of the question of different ships successful the country suggests the overcrowded sportfishing vas was not moving for astatine slightest 7 hours earlier it capsized.

The coastguard has ever insisted that during these hours the vessel was connected a people to Italy and not successful request of rescue.

Last year, a Greek tribunal threw retired charges against 9 Egyptian men who were accused of causing the shipwreck.

The judges successful the confederate larboard metropolis of Kalamata ruled they did not person jurisdiction to perceive the case, connected the grounds the vas sank successful planetary waters.

The indictment had showed that the defendants were being prosecuted connected grounds that had already been contradicted by astatine slightest six survivors, who told the BBC the coastguard had caused their vessel to capsize and past pressured them to framework the Egyptians.

Human rights lawyer, Dimitris Choulis, who represented immoderate of the accused Egyptians said helium was not amazed by what these recordings.

"We cognize astir the coastguard's tactics of either pushing backmost oregon not rescuing people."

He claimed determination had been "an attempted screen up from time one."

"They [Greek authorities] told the communicative 'they did not privation to beryllium rescued' and truthful person insulted the representation of truthful galore dormant people," helium told the BBC.

Human rights groups, including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, person said they person beardown reservations astir the integrity of the Greek probe and person called for an planetary investigation.

The Greek Ombudsman - an autarkic authorization removed from the authorities - has been looking astatine the allegations.

The catastrophe is besides being examined by the Greek Naval Court.