A Greek judge on Tuesday dropped the charges against nine Egyptian men involved in a 2023 migrant boat wreck off Pylos that killed at least 82 people because the court did not have jurisdiction to hear the case, as the sinking happened in international waters. This sinking incident shocked the European Union’s border protection and asylum operations.

Eftichia Kontaratou, the president of the court of appeal of Kalamata gave the decision shortly after the start of the trial, following a recommendation from prosecutors. The nine defendants were then released from pre-trial detention. Had they been convicted, the defendants would have been subject to life in prison, according to local media.

A criminal complaint in the case was lodged before a Greek court by the wreck survivors in 2023. The plaintiffs claimed that Greek authorities did not sufficiently aid the wrecked boat’s passengers but instead opted to tow the boat to port, allegedly resulting in the boat sinking. As a result, more than 500 victims are estimated to have drowned in the deepest part of the Mediterranean while traveling between Libya and Italy, and only 104 people were saved. Greek authorities’ actions were criticized by several human rights organizations including the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, who emphasized the Greek “legal obligation to conduct effective investigations … to lead to the punishment of those responsible.”

A similar Italian case about the insufficient rescue of thousands of migrants in the Mediterranean Sea was dismissed in April, although it was dropped for lack of evidence and the absence of criminal activity.

According to the European border agency Frontex, the number of irregular border crossings in 2023 reached its highest in recent years. Irregular migrants mostly used a route through the central Mediterranean to reach Europe, which contributed to 157,479 irregular arrivals that year.