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FOOTAGE OF THE Turkish coastguard attacking an inflatable migrant dinghy with children on board was captured by a Channel 4 journalist this morning.
The shocking photos and video were taken on the high seas mid-channel between Turkey and Greece.
Twenty men, 15 children and five women were on the boat that was attacked.
Journalist Alex Thomson was with Migrants Offshore Aid Station (MOAS) when he witnessed the incident.
Speaking to Newstalk lunchtime he said, “We witnessed a battle for survival on the high seas it’s fair to say.
“The Turkish coastguard were there and sent of a fast inflatable which attacked the boat for about 10 or 15 minutes with long poles.
I think they were trying to destabilise or disable the engine but of course they hit people, it was a very overcrowded dinghy.
When asked what the coastguard was trying to do this morning, Thomson said:
I don’t believe anybody out there this morning was trying to kill people. They were trying to persuade the migrants to go back to Turkey, they were trying to stop their boat.
He said the actions taken could have caused people to fall into the sea and be injured.
It comes as the European Union and Turkish leaders are closing in on an agreement to send thousands of migrants arriving in Greece back to Turkey.
The new arrangements could come into force as soon as Sunday. Thomson said:
There has been a period of gales for the past few days, those winds have now dropped so you’re seeing a backlog of people coming across, around 250 crossed in this area in the island of Samos just in the past 24 hours and you’re going to see more and more of that.
“What we’re seeing at the moment is that a lot of people will come anyway because they’ve already paid the people traffickers.”
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Well i definitely think Turkey shouldn’t be in the eu.
Ehhhh read the article … They wee trying to get then to STAY in Turkey ie to turn back to Turkish land … Not prevent them from getting TO Turkey … But whatever you think yourself … All in all a cr4ppy attention seeking headline … Again
oh thats ok so then.
I think Bobby is talking about the entire deal being hashed out between Turkey and the EU, part of which includes membership of the EU.
Yes andrea i am thanks europe couldn’t handle another 79 million i think its the population of turkey. thats the deal their looking for.Free movement of turkey into eu.Their president is a nut job so million would want to leave
All 80 million Turkish people will be allowed visa free access to the EU from this July onwards, its part of the EU-Turkey deal to keep Syrians inside refugee Turkish borders. So we’re swapping refugees from Syria for economic migrants from Turkey.
Turkey will only have visa free access to Schengen countries – 6 month periods. Ireland & UK still require them to apply for visas as we are not part of Schengen. This is all little consolation for Ireland in the long run as (a) there will be a roaring trade for fake Turkish passports; and (b) once the arrive in EU (Schengen) they will disappear under the radar after 6 month and never go home. It will take many years for Turkey to join the EU and we can only hope the EU in its present form collapses before then and reverts to its rightful form – a series of trade agreements.
Half of them seem to be in North London already
Australia hasn’t had a migrant boat arrive in 600 days because they patrol their oceans and deport anyone who tries to enter illegally. We could learn a thing or two from them.
good thing they weren’t patrolling when the Irish were arriving during their greatest times of need, eh?
Sandra, you’ll be able to show us evidence of millions of Irish illegal immigrants trying to enter Australia by boat, yes?
How quickly people forget that the Irish who emigrated had to go through strict immigration controls and never received a single handout when they arrived. Compare that to today where we’re giving visas and social housing to people from Iran who claim to be Syrian and are only taking the trip because their visa applications were denied.
Sandra, are you referring to the tens of thousands of Irish that were transported forcibly to Australia post US independence?
There was no free lunch for the Irish Sandra. Sink or swim, pardon the pun. Irish people did a lot of the heavy lifting building America, Canada, Australia and England during the industrial revolution and after WW2. They didn’t have their hands out looking for a free life with all the trimmings paid for by other people.
People like Sandra don’t do context Grot. They think they can apply the norms of the the 1800s to today, forgetting that places like the US and Australia were brand new countries that were actively encouraging people to come.
Encouraging people to come? Irish Catholics received horrendous receptions and native Protestants did their best to keep them down. This is exactly the same thing as is happening now; fear of the “other”. Making claims that they are incompatible with the host society, saying that they are trying to piggy back on the hard work of the native culture, that they are looking for handout. It was all total rubbish 200 years ago and it is still compete paranoid waffle.
Trea, the Americans both wanted and need immigrants at that time.
Yes, Irish Catholics and others received horrible treatment, typical of the behaviour of American Protestants at the time, but that has little relevance now.
Ireland in particular and Europe in general has no need of millions of semi-literate and unskilled Asians and Africans, many with potentially dangerous beliefs, so the comparison with nineteenth century America doesn’t hold.
The fact that these modern day and largely Muslim illegal immigrants are making bee lines for the countries with the highest rates of social welfare, bypassing various perfectly safe but poorer countries in the process, demonstrates that they very definitely are looking for handouts and are perfectly happy to piggy back on the work of their hosts.
You’ll remember that these are not the first Muslims to enter Europe and their precursors have hardly covered themselves in glory.
ok, points taken. The situations are quite different
@Naberius I have to push there, migrants are making their way to areas they perceive as giving them the best chance for a new life in terms of employment and opportunity. Many of the countries they pass through are indeed safe but don’t offer prospects or empathy.
Also I’m not sure who you are referring to with regards to their predecessors. Muslims have been integrating successfully into Europe for centuries British Muslims are regarded as the most integrated minority group in the UK.
I’m afraid that a few bad eggs are fulfilling and justifying prejudices that have been simmering below the surface but they don’t reflect the vast majority and we don’t turn our backs on those in need of our help because of them.
“British Muslims are regarded as the most integrated minority group in the UK” According to who? Seriously, are you having a laugh? Bradford, Leeds, Oldham, Luton. etc etc… Shining examples of Muslim integration in the UK?
So it’s not a case of escaping “war torn” Syria then Lynchtrea? It is about about a better life, they are prepared to make everyone else’s life worse by soaking up the resources of the country wth the best welfare system. Now we’re getting somewhere when you and your bleeding heart mates are willing to admit their scam.
You can push all you like, but you are agreeing with me that these people are effectively shopping around for the best deal. In other words, which nation of gonks will give them the most free cash money and the handiest lifestyle.
I’m referring to their predecessors in the UK, in France, in Belgium, in the Netherlands and so on.
I’m referring to their high rates of criminal behaviour, their habit of intentionally segregating themselves from the wider population, antisocial behaviour, lack of educational achievement, general religious nuttery, child abuse, pederasty, cousin marrying and, of course, terrorism.
I would suggest that Irish, Polish, Chinese, Hindus, Filipinos and so on are all far better integrated in the UK or any other western country than Muslims.
Certainly, we could dig out a few ‘native’ British types who hang around here and ask them which ethnic group in the UK they think are the best integrated. I doubt we’ll be seeing Muslims at the top of the list.
Nobody is suggesting that we turn our backs on people, simply that allowing them to be vomited into Europe en masse and unchecked isn’t a great idea.
http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/belief/2012/jul/03/muslims-integrated-britain
I doubt fleeing from warzones and homelands laid destitute by wars and famine while risking lives on perilous journeys constitutes as “shopping around”; you make it sound like browsing through the Jervis. My biggest problem with the far right is their lack of empathy painted in flippant language “vomit”, “gonks” providing “free welfare”. I thank God that a person like Merkel was on duty when this crisis happened and she showed the balls and the heart to do what was right, despite the paranoia and fear mongering coming from those who would shut the gate to everyone.
This will be my last go at this tonight because there are pints out there with my name on them.
Give me a rundown of the wars and famines in Iran, Pakistan, Algeria, Morocco, Bangladesh and all the other places these non-Syrian types are appearing from.
I don’t consider a stroll across southern Europe, punctuated with free train rides and including free food, clothing,medicine, and housing, to be terribly perilous.
These people *are* shopping around, you admitted it yourself in your second to last comment.
They are looking for the highest rates of welfare, the places that are most likely to bend over backwards to accommodate them, the places that are stupid enough to ignore them and make excuses for them when they murder, rape, steal and scuffle.
I’m not saying all of the migrants are dangerous, or that most of them are dangerous, or that they are inherently dangerous, I’m saying we have no idea what is what because of the way that German dunce and her pets have handled things, opening the doors to whatever fancies to come in.
I don’t know much about the far right, I’m a liberal, buddy. That’s why I’m nervous about millions of Muslims showing up on our collective doorstep.
These people *are* being provided with free welfare, there can be no argument there.
Tell me, what precisely have any of the migrants who have rocked up in Sweden or Germany done for the Swedes or Germans to earn their keep? What are they ever likely to do to earn it?
As for the article you provided written by none other than a Mr. Moosavi, heh.
Enjoy the pints, I’m sipping whiskey. They are not shopping for welfare, nowhere did I say that. They are attracted to the best opportunities for employment and a new life. Saying they want handouts is typical prejudice based on nothing but Fox News type rhetoric. Those countries you listed are not providing refugees, 9 out of 10 are coming from Syria, Afghanistan, or Iraq. The other 10% are coming from warzones in Africa or Ukraine. If you are a liberal then you believe that people, all people, deserve a basic survival. Providing food and medicine to children and women hardly constitutes economy breaking luxuries. As a fellow liberal I too have issues with many cultural aspects of source countries but we’ll deal with that when children aren’t washing up on our shores dead.
Lynch, the real figure is actually 20% according to the EU. A whopping 80% aren’t even Syrian but come mainly from Iran, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Sub-saharan Africa. Your points about Muslims successfully integrating is laughably wide of the mark given the arrest today of a Belgian-born Muslim who organised the deaths of over a hundred innocent civilians in Paris.
One child washed up dead Lynchtea, of course many others drowned but only one “washed up . You may be prepared to wait to see what happens after millions of those who want sharia to rule Europe but I certainly don’t. You are not making a case for the needy here, you are in fact making a strong case on behalf of people who can afford to pay huge money to traffickers, who are willing to put their children’s lives in very real danger by making the initial sea crossing. In order to secure a life on benefits that they have contributed nothing to and that those who have contributed will receive less for. Our health system is bad enough as it is but can only get worse when your way us finished. Of course there are people in need of help, particularly in Syria but these are the ones who don’t have the extortionate fees required to pay the traffickers, these are the people who need ouyr help. That God you thank for Merkel could very well cost you your very life if things go the way you hope. I suggest that keep in mind a phrase which all too often has been proven true “eaten bread is soon forgotten” and would implore to look into sharia. Start with the age if consent and go on from there. You are inviting a lot if people who will destroy our culture and fail to recognise our laws as soon as their belly’s are full.
Democracy or Koran….mmmmmm! which should i choose, tough one!
If the turks get their deal 79 million will have access to Europe its time we get out of the eu we just cant handle that many.
the turks will never get in. They have being trying for 20 years.
Nato war machine is placed in turkey and if they take the migrants they will be looking for free movement into the eu.They have the eu by the nuts
Like it or not Bobby, Turkey is a key member of NATO. They control the Dardanelles and unlike other NATO members they have shown zero hesitance towards striking at the Russians when required.
They may be an antagonistic country but they played a key role in checking Russian influence in the Middle East.
@Bobby Phelan
According to BBC Europe correspondent Damian Grammaticas, the deal would allow more than 70 million Turks to travel (but not work) visa-free in Europe’s Schengen zone.
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-35761623
If they’re not allowed to work in the Schengen zone then, hopefully, most of them won’t stay in that zone.
I dont know about that jason i reckon Russia has tamed the isil down quite a good bit where as the turks are buying the oil from isil that would be why i would be sceptic of turkey they haven’t even declared isil as an terrorist organisation yet so i wouldn’t knock Russia to much.I am also going to say American influence in the middle east is not doing so good either.
@Bobby Phelan
The deal is not as easy for Turkey as it sounds.
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-eu-referendum-35832035
“For visa liberalisation to happen, Turkey has to meet 72 benchmarks on everything from biometric passports to judicial cooperation.”
The paragraph entitled ‘Not on the agenda’ is particularly informative.
Ciaran i read that a lot of coulds and ifs.Personally for me i would like to go back to the eec and forget about the eu currency its only going to drag our country down.The eu is messy time to find other solutions
It’s is actually possible to deal with more than one thing at a time
They already have almost 3 million refugees,
This is obvious nonsense. According to some of the great people who comment daily on this forum there ARE NO women or children amongst the migrants. There are only young, fit men who want to take our jobs and rape our women. Jesu wept. Meanwhile, everything is about Turkey. Not a word about the Greeks, who have been reduced to beggary by Germany and the EU and are now supposed to become a giant prison camp for migrants from the Middle East and beyond. This is way past disgraceful.
You are an idiot. Plain and simple.
Alright Silvie, pipe down. You probably should have gone to spec savers but there is a picture of a woman in the article. An contrary to popular belief, killing people is not a good thing generally although there are some exclusions to that but they all have the same rights under the geneva convention.
Thank you for your valued input, Eddie.
Rashers the question is why is it happening,American invaded Iraq and Afghanistan and then toppled Libya aka gaddafi which by the way was looking after his people.Syria was next on their list and it failed and now we have this mess all for what ?Gaddafi said when he dies europe will see an ocean of people arriving on it countrys and do you know what he was right.Imagine if assad was taken out it would of being pure chaos i blame American and the eu for letting this happen all for money power and greed “oil”control
@ Rashers: 20 men to 5 women, 4:1 men to women. With the 15 children we know two are young children and from the guy’s videos on twitter there are no other small children in sight. The other 13 could be and probably are unaccompanied boys in their late teens if the figures of the amount of unaccompanied teens in Sweden, Austria and Germany are to be believed.
What do you think the solution to this crisis should be anyway? Just let everybody in and deal with the consequences later?
And you are quite correct in that view, Bobby. We are looking at a similar situation to that in Bosnia, where tens of thousands died, whilst the great EU arsed about.
Gaddafi was setup and taken out because he wanted to trade in gold and was vocal about it on the world stage. Up until then, Libya had one of the highest per capita gold reserves in the world. Syria is being destroyed to get a Saudi oil pipe line running through there. Nothing more, nothing less.
Eddie, satire and irony is obviously wasted on you
Chewy a never ending war is massive business the arms manufacturing companys must be proud .I read about that saudi pipeline it would make perfect sense to have assad gone.With gaddafi i think they were afraid he could of united Africa and eventually become another supper power Africa is rich in resources and minerals best to keep them poor and under control while the west plunders its wealth!
Bobby, they are never ending *manufactured* wars
The wealthy are wrecking the world..
Are they trying to enflame the situation and force Europe to give more aid? A few more drowned children might do the trick.
No, they’re trying to stick to agreements with Europe to prevent economic migrants from leaving Turkey. This entire incident was the Turkish Coast Guard attempting to force a migrant vessel to return to Turkey as per agreements with the EU.
Jason, that’s implausible although it is recognised that you are the world’s leading expert in naval, army and airforce matters, including methods of swamping boats.
You say I’m wrong but don’t give any reasoning as to why, resorting only to petty insults. Great argumentative skills as usual Fiona.
Good to see Turkey taking a responsible approach to the migrant crises. It’s well gone the time to allow then join the EU. NOT!!
Putting aside feeling’s anyone might have on the whole migrant situation you can’t get past the fact that people employed to save others in trouble on the water deliberately attempted to kill defenceless men, women and children… I mean spin the crisis how you like but at the end of the day that’s just attempted murder by people whose job it is to save lives..
Well said Andy. Thanks to Merkel we have just hired Turkey as Europe’s bouncers and they have been given carte blanche to use their muscle in any way to stop migrants/refugees leaving getting into EU water. It’s in Turkey’s interest to see them die rather than take them back. And to think we are paying the Turks €6 bn of our money and promising visa free access to Europe and a fast track to EU accession. It’s the worst thing the EU has ever done. I’m thoroughly disgusted and all I can say is NOT IN MY NAME
I didn’t see any deliberate attempts to kill anyone. All I saw was the Coast Guard attempting to disable the engine of a vessel attempting to illegally travel from Turkey to Greece.
Jason, yeah, right. Just swamping the boat.
Whoever the refugees are, whatever the reason they are moving there is a simple truth that has to be faced. Europe does not have the resources to accomodate the influx especially Greece and its neighbours, not without it costing us in real terms no matter what Frau Merkel may think.
I didn’t realise there was a war in Turkey. Also, from the headline you’d think they were shooting at the boat, not trying to disable the engine.
It’s the bleeding hearts brigade out in force again with their complete lack of understanding for how these things work. If the Turkish Coast Guard really wanted to kill migrants they would have simply opened fire from their patrol boat instead of risking the lives of Coast Guard personnel on an inflatable boat.
Shooting would not have allowed plausible deniability. The kindest evaluation is that this was an act of grossly reckless endangerment.
One wonder If perhaps other drowned refugess might have been caused by more than unseaworthy vessels.
No Fiona, as I said the entire situation was a simple case of the Turkish Coast Guard attempting to stop an illegal vessel and a bunch of bleeding heart press who have zero comprehension of the situation.
Not to Sure The Journal Have Joined The RTE Newstalk bias. ….I just can’t belive there reporting
Poor people.
Yeah, the emotional manipulation which is this article worked well on you. Must be pleasant having such a soft head.
I’d rather have a soft head than a cruel one like yourself pal.
What’s cruel is encouraging them the attempt the journey in the first place. Also, tell me more about the war in Turkey they are escaping?
Who’d want to live in Turkey? It is a kip and yes it is at war with the Kurds.
There was a tweet like this months ago and it actually turned out the Greek coastguard was using a special tenique to get the dingy to come along side the boat so they could bring people aboard but it looked like they where trying to puncture the craft.
€6billion and entry to the EU,
Maybe the we should all think about,
Our position in the EU.
This is the country we in the EU have given over 4 billion euro to handle the migrant crisis on our behalf. Absolute disgrace of the highest order.
Well nothing the rest of Europe isn’t doing… Instead of poking them with poles, they’ve just built fences…
Those dastardly Europeans and their dangerous static fences!
I wonder did the Channel 4 journalist intervene to rescue the women and children? It’s not acceptable here or in the UK to film footage such as drownings and not try to help…I suppose the thoughts of some Journalistic award was high in his/her mind?
Surely that is attempted murder?
Thank god you’re not a judge. This is standard practice to disable illegal smuggling vessels to forcibly bring them back to shore. The Australians intercept vessels like this all the time, disable their engines and then tow them to a safe location for the illegals on-board to be deported.
They were trying to disable the engine and take them back to Turkey . how is that attempted murder ??
Swamping a boat and sinking it is a method of disabling an engine. Most engines don’t work underwater for long unless they are submarine engines. It’s unfortunate if anyone drowns. Children, women and men are expendable. Their lives are not as valuable as our lives.
A video here of a Sky reporter who travelled across on a dinghy with the refugees and who were confronted by the Turkish Coastguard.
http://youtu.be/yjQMzEPASpU
So sky are lining smugglers pockets now? I dount it. Far left Propaganda more like.
Try putting the boot on the other foot if Ireland was Greece and you had millions of people headin to your shores and with the country in a deep recession what would you do its ok for us talk but its a serious situation if any thing i feel sorry for greese their problems are only going to get worse.Turkey are a different story with that president they have they will use it to get free movmovement into the eu.I have no problems with Turkish people there hard working people but there’s just to many.
What else would you expect from the Turks – a truly humane govt.
Naberius…i like the cut of your jib…
Typically, these comments are taken over by right wing Irish racists and it’s nauseating to read most of them. I regard these people as misinformed idiots but, that’s my opinion, and if you don’t agree with it, I couldn’t give a damn. It’s a waste of time to write anything.
Accusing those he disagrees with of racism and then declaring a lack of willingness to debate opinions. A prime example of the modern liberal.
I don’t know which one of us is being naive.
What is new the Turkish are committing genocide on their own Kurd population in the south east of Turkey, but no one says a word about that?
My stats come from the UN and are buttressed by the stats of aid agencies. I’d advise to stay away from infowars as your source.
@Jho So let me get this straight one infant washes up dead (it’s far more than one) and that’s just an anomaly, but one native born Muslim commits crime and more than a billion people are now suspects and we should turn our backs? You’re also claiming that by default if an immigrant arrives on the shores of Europe then they have therefore eliminated themselves from deserving help? So if they want to be saved they should stay in their war zone?
Again you display the same language and thinking that native Protestants expressed to Irish Catholics 200 years ago; they are a threat to our society!, their values are not compatible!
You are afraid and have no real idea of what you are afraid of.
Lynchtea I am not sure why I should even bother to respond but I know exactly what I am afraid of and said so in my previous comment. I fear sharia, not because I might lose my life for opposing it but that it would be spared so that I have to endure a life without the culture I love so much. Though I rarely drink alcohol I enjoy the freedom to do so if I wish, I could never be without music, books, art etc. Where do your UN sourced facts state that only one Muslim has committed a crime ? Was it the same one on ever crime, aside from which I never mentioned Muslims. Your poor foot must be likeva colander the amount of times you have shot yourself in it.
What cool aid are you drinking to think that Europe will be subjugated to Sharia law? I suggest you stop sourcing your facts from infowars. You are paranoid and delusional to think this. Here are my UN sources http://data.unhcr.org/mediterranean/regional.php
But no where will you find anything about one Muslim committing crimes, nor did I say that one Muslim had committed a crime. I just pointed out the hypocrisy of your argument. Never mind my foot I suggest you take yours out of your mouth,
Also you’ve raged against Sharia law more than once now yet you say “I never mentioned Muslims”; which Sharia law would that be then? The Hindus?
You’re dismissed.
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