US refugee workers in Greece face sex abuse probe
US refugee workers in Greece face sex abuse probe
Greek officials are investigating allegations that two members of a US aid agency sexually exploited refugees they were supposed to be helping.
1 min read
Mercy Corps said it had put the two staffers on temporary paid leave. [Getty]
Officials in Greece are investigating allegations that two members of a US aid agency sexually exploited refugees they were supposed to be helping.
The allegations were first revealed in mid-May by the office of the European Commission for Humanitarian Affairs, Christos Stylianides.
The European Commission said it was taking the allegations made against the US agency Mercy Corps "very seriously" and had suspended funding for the humanitarian organisation.
Mercy Corps said it had put the two staffers on temporary paid leave after receiving a call on its complaints hotline.
"We are taking this situation very seriously and have reported the allegation to Greek authorities as well as to the funders of our programme," it added in a statement issued Tuesday.
At that time a European Commission spokesman spoke of "potentially serious allegations concerning a humanitarian project led by a partner in Greece", without naming the agency involved.
Mercy Corps is of the many NGOs working in Greece with the help of European funding to help the tens of thousands of refugees and migrants blocked from moving further into Europe.
Many of them have fled the conflict in Syria, which has claimed the lives of more than 500,000 people.
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