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Everyone was injured, all broken, no one could walk.

Date & Time 2022-08-24
Location Horgos, Serbia
Reported by Collective Aid
Coordinates 46.17598729, 19.97590514
Pushback from Hungary
Pushback to Serbia
Taken to a police station no
Minors involved no
WLTI* involved no
Men involved yes
Age 25 - 25
Group size 15
Countries of origin Afghanistan, Pakistan, Syria, Tunisia
Treatment at police station or other place of detention photos taken, no translator present, denial of food/water
Overall number of policemen and policewomen involved unknown
Violence used beating (with batons/hands/other), kicking, destruction of personal belongings, theft of personal belongings, denial of water
Police involved At least one Hungarian police officier, two Czech officers (green uniforms, Czech flag on the chest), one green "Crossover", one white and blue police van, one white and blue bus

On the 24th of August 2022, a group of 15 injured men was pushed back from Hungary to Serbia.

The respondent (Tunisian 25y) explains he was in Hungary close to Mórahalom with a friend. They ran out of water and decided to get closer to the village. He says between 8 and 9am they were walking along Felszabadulás road when a green “Crossover” arrived from behind and stopped them (46.204958, 19.907401).

The car had 3 officers on board. Two of them were wearing green clothes and what the respondent describes as a Czech flag on the chest. He adds they were speaking English with the third officer who was wearing a Hungarian police uniform. “These two Czechs I know them, they are so bad, so violent”.

The respondent and his friend were told to sit on their knees. The respondent explains that while they were sitting, he got hit by one of the officers wearing a Czech flag. He reportedly received several strong boot kicks in the ribs from behind. “We were next the big street, in front of people passing. But when they see people, they don’t beat us, they wait until no one sees”.

He adds that his friend was hit repeatedly by the second officer in the ribs and in the legs. “He wanted to break his legs”. He says they had to wait on their knees for a long time while the officers were searching the woods around to try and find more people. “From time to time they were coming back to beat us”. “We were hungry and needed water, I asked for water but they didn’t give us”.

The two men were then reportedly searched, even in their underwear. He adds that they found a total of 400 euros and some Serbian Dinars in their clothes. “We thought they are going to give it back, but they gave back just the dinars”. The officers also found two phones which they reportedly broke by hitting them with the handle of a knife before giving them back to the respondent and his friend. Eventually they found a power bank which they broke by destroying the charging port with the blade of a knife.

The respondent says they were photographed by the Czech officers. “They told me if they catch me again they’re gonna break my legs. They said, “I’ll remember you”. I am afraid now to go again”

The respondent explains they then had to wait around an hour until a white and blue police van arrived and took the two of them through the village to a petrol station. There they had to wait again to be transferred in a white and blue “bus” with 15 other people. “They wait for the bus to be full of people. They don’t take just two people to the border. They wait, they must take 15/20 people. We waited until the bus was full”. “Everyone was injured, all broken, no one could walk”.

“After that no one beat us anymore but on the first street it was so bad”.

The respondent explains the bus drove them to the Roszke transit zone where they were searched again and photographed before being all pushed back through the gate in the fence (46.175989, 19.975914).