Three brothers from Syria were apprehended by the police 5km from Szeged, Hungary on a small side street. The police car pulled up behind them at around 08:00 am and four policemen from the Czech Republic got out. The oldest brother, 24 years old, was charging his phone with his power bank. One of the Czech policemen pulled the power bank from his hands, threw it to the ground and it broke. Two police left to make a call to organize the van to collect the brothers and take them to the Hungarian/Serbian border. No conversation was had between the brothers and police other than asking ‘where are you from?’

The respondent, the oldest brother, noted that he did repeatedly tell the Czech policeman that his youngest brother, 14 years old, was extremely cold and weak. He emphasized that he made it clear his brother was a minor and needed some kind of physical support. The police said there was nothing they could do and left the youngest brother shaking in the cold. The three brothers were all forced to sit in the cold having for an hour, having just spent the night in the forest and having walked for four hours in the fog and rain.

Once the van arrived, one of the policemen escorted them over. He said ‘doctor? doctor?’ seemingly offering them medical attention. Without waiting for an answer, he slammed the door of the van shut while laughing loudly. The respondent said it was clear he was insulting them. He had wanted to see a doctor but was not actually given the chance.

The van took them to the Horgos border crossing in the fence. They went through the police station there, had their photos taken, and then were told to enter Serbia.