"Wittenberg is one of 37 people on trial on the Greek island of Lesbos for helping refugees who were making the sea crossing from Turkey to Greece. Twenty-four people in the group are humanitarian aid workers. The trial resumes in Mytilene, the capital of Lesbos, on January 15. It has become known as the "Mardini case" after one of the defendants, Syrian competitive swimmer and activist Sarah Mardini."
"In 2015, Sarah Mardini fled Syria with her younger sister Yusra. The two crossed the Aegean by boat from Turkey to Lesbos. When the overcrowded boat they were travelling in began to sink, the two sisters then aged 19 and 17 and both competitive swimmers jumped into the water and swam three hours to the Greek shore, pulling the boat behind them. In doing so, they saved the lives of the other passengers."
A trial on Lesbos involves 37 defendants accused of helping refugees cross the Aegean from Turkey to Greece, including 24 humanitarian aid workers. The trial resumed in Mytilene on January 15 and is expected to conclude within days. Accusations include espionage, assisting smuggling networks, and membership of a criminal organization. Dutch national Pieter Wittenberg is among the defendants. In 2015, sisters Sarah and Yusra Mardini crossed to Lesbos; as competitive swimmers they swam three hours to pull a sinking boat to shore and later sought asylum in Germany, with Yusra competing for the Refugee Olympic Team in 2016.
Read at www.dw.com
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