Greek military court for the two Greek soldiers who were arrested in Turkey and remained in custody for 5.5 months. Second Lieutenant Angelos Mitretodis and Sergeant Dimitris Kouklatzis will have to testify to a military court about about the circumstances that they led to their arrest by Turkish soldiers last March.
Together with the two Greek soldiers, another eight persons, superiors of them, will be tried.
They will initially submit a written testimony and then the military court they will testify about errors and omissions that led to their arrest. Supplementary testimonies are to be given in a second stage.
It should be noted that the internal investigation on the issue was not widely accepted and it was requested to be conducted again as it was considered that it did not cover the whole range of responsibilities.
Sources from the Defense Ministry told media that responsibilities were not assigned in the heat of the moment and that the basic aim of the process is to ensure the prestige of the Greek Armed Forces.
The indictment is expected to be sent in the next days.
Mitretodis and Kouklatzis remained in Turkish custody without pressed charges in the high security prison in Edirne, West Turkey.
They have reportedly said that they were following traces of footsteps in the snow when they lost orientation due to the bad weather conditions and accidentally crossed into Turkey where they arrested short after.
Despite appeals for their release by the Greek government and the European Union they remained in custody for 167. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan wanted to exchanged them with the 8 Turkish soldiers who fled to Greece after the failed coup in summer 2016. In a surprise move, the two were released on August 14.
Defense Minister Panos Kammenos and the Chief of General Staff Alkiaviadis Stefanis welcomed them in a ceremony with all military honors.
KTG understands the military court is a normal procedure for such an issue.
UPDATE: In a statement reportedly issued late on Wednesday, the Greek General Staff said that the internal investigation has not concluded yet. It dismissed media reports saying “Nobody has been referred to the military court.”
