Sean Binder

A GREEK COURT will decide later this week whether to dismiss a case against an Irish man and 23 other people who have been charged with crimes including ...

Binder was born in Germany, but grew up in Castlegregory, Co Kerry. “We want the rule of law, and we’ll find out on Friday whether we get the rule of law or the rule of flaw.” A different solicitor acting for defendants based outside Greece told the court that the accusations were a vague interpretation of the law, and that if they were unclear in Greek, they would be equally unclear in a different language. In one instance, a solicitor claimed his client was referred to as ‘defendant number 6′ on the first page of a subpoena and as ‘defendant number 7′ on another page, meaning that she could not know whose crimes she was supposed to be defending. Solicitors claimed subpoenas issued by the prosecution did not contain any evidence for the crimes alleged to have been committed, and did not refer to specific dates on which the alleged crimes took place. More than 5,000 readers have already pitched in to keep free access to The Journal.

The trial of a Kerry humanitarian worker in Greece has concluded for today and will continue on Friday.Sean Binder, who is a German citizen but grew up in ...

Speaking outside the court in Lesbos, after court ended for the day, Mr Binder says the prosecution have done everything possible to make the trial not happen. Sean Binder, who is a German citizen but grew up in Castlegregory, is one of 24 migrant rescue volunteers on Lesbos who were charged in 2018 with a range of offences, including spying and illegal access to state communications. Amnesty International says the case is a farce and wants the charges dropped.

Human rights group Amnesty International has described the case against the 24 defendants as 'farcical'.

“This trial reveals how the Greek authorities will go to extreme lengths to deter humanitarian assistance and discourage migrants and refugees from seeking safety on the country’s shores, something which we see in a number of European countries,” he said. And now we’ll find out on Friday whether we get the rule of law or the rule of flaws,” he added. “Sarah and Sean did what any of us should do if we were in their position. “We are desperate to go to trial because what we did was legal,” he said. “We’ve spent the entire morning giving reason after reason, irrefutable reasons why this trial could not continue. That is the fundamental problem,” Binder said outside court before Tuesday’s hearing.

A Greek trial on Tuesday (10 January) against 24 humanitarian aid workers who helped prevent refugees and asylum seekers from drowning has been postponed ...

Others still were not allowed to go to their own trial in a case that has been dragging on for years "so that prosecution is effectively a form of persecution," he said. In a statement, Bill Van Esveld, associate children's rights director at Human Rights Watch, said that "the case is really an indictment of the Greek authorities, who are going after people for saving lives the authorities didn't want them to save." Some 24 are facing trial in Mytilene, on the island of Lesbos, on misdemeanour charges related to Emergency Response Center International (ERCI), a registered NGO that had in the past assisted the Greek Coast Guard in rescue operations. Three of the defendants, Sarah Mardini, Sean Binder and Nassos Karakitsos, are also standing trial for espionage and forgery, which can carry up to eight years in prison. The case, which has been dragging on for years, has been described by civil society as part of a A court in Athens is instead set to hear procedural objections from the defendants lawyers on Friday, according to the Greek-based legal aid NGO, Fenix.

MYTILENE, Greece (AP) — A group of 24 aid workers and volunteers who participated in...

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The trial of a group of 24 aid workers and volunteers, among them Irishman Sean Binder, who participated in migrant rescue operations on a Greek island, ...

"This trial reveals how the Greek authorities will go to extreme lengths to deter humanitarian assistance and discourage migrants and refugees from seeking safety on the country's shores, something which we see in a number of European countries," he said. "Sarah and Sean did what any of us should do if we were in their position. And now we'll find out on Friday whether we get the rule of law or the rule of flaws," he added. "And we need the judge to acknowledge that we need to get through this, because until then, there is a shadow of doubt, not over me alone, but over anybody who does search and rescue." We want the rule of law. That is the fundamental problem," Mr Binder said outside court before today's hearing.