Athens, 21 July 2024 (dpa/MIA) — A Greek border police officer has been injured by gunfire at the Greek-Turkish border river Evros, the Greek police reported on Sunday.

The shots were fired from the Turkish side of the river, the police said. At that time, Greek border guards were reportedly preventing an illegal crossing of migrants from Turkey into Greece.

It was unclear who fired the shots. Greek media reported that Greek security officials believe that smugglers fired the shots.

Investigations have been initiated, the police added. The incident occurred on Saturday evening.

The 57-year-old border policeman, who was injured in the abdomen, was taken to a hospital in the Evros region and underwent surgery, Greek radio reported, citing the rescue service.

Smuggling gangs repeatedly attempt to bring migrants across the shallow waters of the Evros river from Turkey to Greece and thereby into the European Union during the summer drought. Greece is currently constructing a fence along this border to prevent illegal crossings.

According to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, 3,168 people have taken this route from Turkey to Greece since the beginning of the year through July 14.