Turkey: Border Guards Kill and Injure Asylum Seekers

(Istanbul) – Turkish border guards are shooting and beating Syrian asylum seekers trying to reach Turkey, resulting in deaths and serious injuries, Human Rights Watch said today. The Turkish authorities should stop pushing Syrian asylum seekers back at the border and should investigate all use of excessive force by border guards.

During March and April 2016, Turkish border guards used violence against Syrian asylum seekers and smugglers, killing five people, including a child, and seriously injuring 14 others, according to victims, witnesses, and Syrian locals interviewed by Human Rights Watch. Turkey’s Foreign Affairs Ministry maintains the country has an “open-door policy” for Syrian refugees, despite building a new border wall.
Since at least mid-August 2015, Turkish border guards have pushed back Syrians trying to reach Turkey. In April 2016, Human Rights Watch reported that Turkish border guards enforcing Turkey’s one-year-old border closure had shot at Syrians escaping advances by the extremist group Islamic State (also known as ISIS), northeast of Aleppo. Human Rights Watch also revealed how Turkish border guards blocked thousands of fleeing displaced persons after their camps near the border had been hit by artillery fire on April 13 and 15.

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Sickening. Turkey is becoming more and more a bastion of human rights abuses. Unfortunately I imagine we have several members here who will try to justify these actions and even with the US would adopt some sort of policy like this.

TheDemSocialist said:

Read more @: Turkey: Border Guards Kill and Injure Asylum Seekers

Sickening. Turkey is becoming more and more a bastion of human rights abuses. Unfortunately I imagine we have several members here who will try to justify these actions and even with the US would adopt some sort of policy like this. [/FONT][/COLOR]

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They are only guarding the eu boarders and well paid for it.

joG said:

They are only guarding the eu boarders and well paid for it.

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Well, they weren't guarding any EU border in this instance.

Just waiting for that foul EU-Turkey deal to fall over. Currently sounds like Erdogan considers any of the conditions he has to comply with (primarily his anti-terrorism laws which give him carte blanche to do anything to his own) as outside interference which he will not allow.

We'll see if the EU will have the cojones to then say "well, sorry then, no Visa free travelling".

I'm not holding my breath on the cojones bit.

Chagos said:

Well, they weren't guarding any EU border in this instance.

Just waiting for that foul EU-Turkey deal to fall over. Currently sounds like Erdogan considers any of the conditions he has to comply with (primarily his anti-terrorism laws which give him carte blanche to do anything to his own) as outside interference which he will not allow.

We'll see if the EU will have the cojones to then say "well, sorry then, no Visa free travelling".

I'm not holding my breath on the cojones bit.

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You are quite right. It is extremely interesting.
But the persons were shot to defend the EU boarders. They have so many fugitive in their country now that they can arguably say that the boat is full. If more come, they must be through fare guests on their way to somewhere.
Say : EU. The same is true for the compacts the EU or its members had with Qaddafi and other warlords that they are now desperately trying to re-implement with the dictators' replacements. These people were and will be expected to deal with the refugees as they are want and will be paid for the efforts.

Responsibility and cause are closely connected and the cause for such shootings is partially in the deals to prevent emigration. Even, if it is by intermediary at least co-responsibility is, where the decision is made that sets the chain of activities in motion that kills.