Forced to walk shoeless to the nearest Transit Reception Centre
| 16.07.2021 | Irinovac, Croatia | Collective Aid | 44.9609888, 15.6561959 | Croatia | Bosnia | yes | no | no | yes | no | no | 16 | Afghanistan | detention | 18 | beating (with batons/hands/other), kicking, forcing to undress, destruction of personal belongings, theft of personal belongings | 6 Croatian Police officers, 12 Special Police (SJP) officers |
After 9pm on the 16th of July, a group of 16 people from Afghanistan crossed the border between Bosnia and Croatia, close to Bihac. The respondent reported that they were caught on the side of road 217 by 6 Croatian police officers in blue uniforms, who arrived in 3 separate vehicles. The respondent reported that the Croatian police units called for back up and shortly after 12 individuals wearing green uniforms balaclavas joined the operation, presumably the Special force's police officers. The respondent states that the members of the transit group were beaten with batons on their limbs and all their belongings were taken: food, water, phone, money, and shoes. They were then taken to the police station, from where they were brought to the Bosnian border and left there. The respondent and his travel companions proceeded to walk shoeless for days until they reached the nearest Transit Reception Center.