A.Y. v. Greece

Court rulings

Type of violation

Summary of case: Police in Tychero arrested the applicant, an Iraqi national, for unauthorised entry and detained him pending expulsion. Having worked with the United States military, the applicant fled Iraq after extremists threatened him. Authorities processed the applicant under an incorrect name and nationality, failed to register his asylum claim and tried to deport him to Turkey, which was rejected by Turkish officials. Despite multiple attempts by the Greek Council for Refugees to check on the status of the applicant’s asylum application, Greek officials provided no confirmation, response or follow-up. Furthermore, time in detention aggravated the applicant’s asthma. The administrative court only released him after a legal challenge that proved the applicant had alternative accommodation from an NGO, showed his asylum claim was pending and outlined the consequences of detention conditions for his asthma. Based on prior reports describing the inhumane conditions at Tychero and the failure of Greek authorities to process his claim effectively and respond to requests, the Court ruled there was a violation of Article 3 and Article 3 in conjunction with Article 13, but no violation of Article 5(1), Article 5(2) and Article 5(4) in conjunction with Article 13.

Related detention centre

Link to external source: https://www.asylumlawdatabase.eu/en/content/ecthr-%E2%80%93-y-v-greece-application-no-5839911-5-november-2015#content

Supporting files