Leaked Audio Questions Greece's Version of Migrant Shipwreck Tragedy

Mon Dec 01 2025 01:45:25 GMT+0200 (Eastern European Standard Time)

New recordings from Greek rescue coordinators reveal conflicting details about the events leading up to the tragedy that claimed hundreds of lives.

Audio recordings have emerged that challenge the official Greek Coast Guard narrative regarding a fatal migrant shipwreck in June 2023, where as many as 650 individuals perished. Survivors allege negligence and pressure to remain silent, with the Greek authorities facing calls for an independent investigation.

Leaked audio instructions from Greek rescue coordinators have raised serious doubts about the official account of a tragic migrant shipwreck that resulted in the loss of up to 650 lives. The incident, involving a fishing vessel named Adriana, occurred on June 14, 2023, shortly after it had departed from Libya. Survivors claim that the Greek coastguard's actions contributed to the vessel capsizing during a botched towing attempt.

Despite the coastguard's denial of these allegations—asserting that the migrants were never in peril and voluntarily aiming for Italy rather than Greece—newly surfaced recordings suggest otherwise. An unidentified voice from within a Greek rescue coordination center is heard advising the captain of the Adriana to inform an incoming ship that they do not wish to enter Greek waters.

The tragedy is one of the deadliest maritime disasters in Mediterranean history. Originally carrying around 750 migrants, only 82 bodies have been recovered, while the UN suggests that approximately 500 others have perished, including vulnerable women and children.

Obtained by News247.gr, the recordings reveal two crucial phone calls made prior to the sinking. In the first, at 18:50 local time on June 13, a Greek officer tells the captain to communicate that the migrants do not want to go to Greece. The second call, at 22:10, confirms to the captain of the ship supplying aid that the migrants expressed a preference for Italy instead of Greece.

Witnesses, including some of the vessel’s survivors, allege that the coastguard pushed the overcrowded fishing boat into a dangerous situation and then pressured witnesses to support their version of events. The Greek authorities have submitted all related evidence to a Maritime Court, defending their humanitarian efforts in rescuing migrants.

Human rights organizations remain skeptical about the integrity of the investigation, with calls for an international inquiry ongoing. Advocates have questioned the Greek coastguard's tactics and their alleged attempts to cover up their role in this tragedy, as other ship movements in the area appear to contradict Greece's claims of the vessel being on course for Italy. The tragedy continues to draw scrutiny as both the Greek Ombudsman and the Naval Court review the circumstances surrounding the disaster.