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Bulgarian border guards guard the crossing from Turkey near Lesovo
Photo: Stoyan Nenov / REUTERS
Again and again there are illegal pushbacks at the EU's external borders, border guards prevent those seeking protection from entering the EU.
Actually, the EU grants the right to asylum: Refugees must have the right to seek protection in the country.
Now a shot is said to have been fired at an asylum seeker at the EU's external border in Bulgaria.
According to research by ARD and other media, the man is believed to have been shot by Bulgarian border officials.
The media report that it was a young Syrian whose name was known and who was taken to a Turkish hospital after the incident.
In an initial reaction, Bulgaria denied that its border police had shot at migrants.
According to a statement by the Interior Ministry in Sofia, which was broadcast by state television and state radio, 65 people tried to “cross the border illegally”.
A media-verified video from October 3, 2022 shows a young man on the Bulgarian-Turkish border among a group of refugees.
They throw stones at the border fence.
A shot is heard and the young man collapses.
According to the media, the exact video analysis suggests that the shot could have been fired from a distance of around 30 meters from the direction of the Bulgarian border.
According to the Bulgarian Ministry of the Interior, the behavior of the migrants was "aggressive".
A police car was damaged by stones and a border police officer was injured.
Bulgaria complains about the increase in migrants
In November, the European Commission confirmed that Bulgaria was showing a great deal of commitment to border protection and was effectively countering the high migratory pressure.
Bulgaria wants to be included in the Schengen area.
Bulgaria has been complaining about an increase in migrants at the EU's external border with Turkey for weeks.
The border police was therefore reinforced by soldiers.
A Bulgarian policeman was shot dead on November 8 while guarding the border with Turkey.
According to Bulgarian sources, the shot came from Turkey.
mrc/dpa