Overview of main changes since the previous report update The report was previously updated in June 2023. International Protection v Key asylum statistics: As per data published by the Greek Ministry of Migration and Asylum, The Asylum Service received 57,891 first time asylum applications and 6,321 subsequent asylum applications in 2023 –compared to 29,097 first time and 8,265 subsequent applications in 2022, respectively– mainly from applicants from Syria (21.8%), Afghanistan (14.8%), Palestine (10.5%), Iraq (10.1%) and Pakistan (6.3%). The recognition rate on the merits at first instance was 76.7% (compared to 62.3% in 2022), with 24,345 applicants receiving refugee and 591 subsidiary protections respectively, thus highlighting an ongoing prevalence of people in need of international protection amongst those arriving in Greece. However, as in previous years, a significant number of applicants were not provided with access to an in merits examination and their applications were examined and rejected under the safe third country concept, following the issuance of the Joint Ministerial Decision designating Türkiye as a safe third country for applicants from Syria, Afghanistan, Somalia, Pakistan, Bangladesh. A total of 32,730 applications, of which 29,885 at first and 2,845 at second instance, were pending at the end of 2023, marking a close to 50% general increase compared to 2022 (22,170 pending applications, 17,249 of which at first instance and 4,921 at second), albeit a decrease in the backlog of pending cases at second instance. Asylum procedure v Number of arrivals: In 2023, a total of 48,721 refugees and migrants arrived in Greece by sea (41,561) and land (7,160) according to data published by UNHCR, marking a 159% increase compared to 2022 (18,780 arrivals). During the same period, those that were reported as having gone dead and missing (799) more than doubled compared to 2022 (343), largely on account of the devastating Pylos shipwreck, which adds up to what the EU Ombudsman has noted as a “recent history of concerns about the Greek authorities’ compliance with fundamental rights obligations”. The majority of those arriving was from Syria (31.3%), Afghanistan (20%), Palestine (16.3%), Somalia (6.5%) and Eritrea (4.2%). As to their demographics, of those arriving by sea, close to one in four (24%) were children, 17% of whom were recorded as unaccompanied upon arrival, while 18.2% were women and 56.9% men, with the majority of those arriving from Afghanistan, arriving in family groups, as in previous years. The registered number of entries in 2023 may however under-represent the number of people actually attempting to access the Greek territory, given the number of alleged pushbacks, which continued to be reported as a systematic practice during the year. v Push-back practices: Allegations of pushbacks have continued being reported in 2023, inter alia prompting UN experts, including the Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants to once more “urge Greece to take steps to ensure a transparent and impartial investigation into allegations of violations of the principles of non-refoulement and non-discrimination and of the right to life involving Greek law enforcement personnel, including the Hellenic Coast Guard, and border violence”. Between the start of the year and early 2024, the ECtHR has also granted an additional 22 interim measures in cases represented by GCR, with the majority of those alleging that they have been pushed back to Türkiye. Following a first controversial investigation on alleged pushbacks by the National Transparency Agency (‘NTA’) in 2022, which has been widely criticised on account of methodological gaps and omissions, no further such investigations or recommendations have been made public by the NTA in 2023. By contrast, following similar recommendations made in 2022, on account of “strong indications about persisting fundamental rights violations of a serious nature”, in June 2023 the FRONTEX fundamental rights officer once more recommended the suspension of the Agency’s operations in Greece, in accordance with 22