Greek Court Acquits Rescue Workers Accused of Smuggling Migrants

A Greek court has acquitted 24 former aid workers, including refugee Sara Mardini, of all charges related to rescuing migrants during the European refugee crisis nearly a decade ago. The defendants faced up to 20 years in prison if convicted on charges including facilitating illegal entry and money-laundering. The trial was widely condemned by rights groups as an attempt to criminalize rescue work. The aid workers were prosecuted after helping migrants in Lesbos, Greece, which was the front line of the 2015-2016 crisis. The acquittal came amid growing restrictions on migrants and their advocates in Greece. The court's decision was seen as a "courageous ruling" that prevented a dangerous precedent from being set.

After a seven-year legal battle, a Greek court acquitted two dozen aid workers on Lesbos who were accused of smuggling migrants during the 2015 refugee crisis. The defendants, who faced up to 20 years in prison, had been engaged in rescue work on the Aegean island. Rights groups and the European Parliament had criticized the prosecutions, calling it the "criminalization of solidarity." The case was seen as a test of how humanitarians are treated in Europe amid increasingly strict migration policies. While rights groups welcomed the acquittals, they also expressed concern that the prosecutions had effectively halted life-saving work in the Aegean Sea. Among those acquitted were Sara Mardini, a Syrian refugee, and Sean Binder, who both spent 100 days in jail after their 2018 arrest.