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“I tried to find a way out of the cold river but I could not open my eyes”
The respondent, a 30-year-old man from Morocco, was part of a group of six Moroccan men. On the night of 13 October, the group departed from Velika Kladuša and attempted to cross the border on the left side of the city. After walking for about one kilometer, one member of the group was apprehended and pushed back, while the remaining five managed to continue. According to the respondent, they kept walking throughout the following day and night.
Location where one person of the group got pushed back
At 9am the group was stopped approximately 20km from the Slovenian Border by two police officers, which the respondent identified as Croatian Police. The respondent describes how the officers put a gun on his head, forcing him to the ground face down. All five of them were kicked heavily in their rips and on their backs. The officers then took all their phones and powerbanks and threw them into the forest, before calling their colleagues. Two other croatian police officers arrived in a white van, which the group was forced into. The van stopped at Korana river, marking the border to Bosnia.The respondent recalls how the officer commanded him to look at him, in order to then put pepperspray in his eyes from a very close distance. Afterwards all five of them were kicked into the river. The respondent explains how he tried to find a way out of the cold river, while not being able to open his eyes and swallowing a lot of water.
After one hour he was finally able to open his eyes and see something, so the group started to walked towards the next village. According to the respondent, they met a car from the International Organisation of Migration (IOM), which took them back to Lipa Camp.
overview
6 people ,
from Morocco,
aged Between 23 and 33.