'I was so exhausted, I started hitting myself. They laughed': Four Cuban asylum seekers recount their ordeal at Europe's borders
- Posted on April 23, 2026
- By Le Monde
- 1 Views
- 1 min read
In brief
Four Cuban migrants share harrowing testimonies of violent pushbacks at the Lithuania-Belarus border, where they faced physical abuse and psychological trauma during attempted asylum procedures. Their cases highlight Europe's controversial border enforcement practices amid geopolitical tensions with Russia, now under European Court of Human Rights scrutiny for potential human rights violations and inhumane treatment of vulnerable asylum seekers.
'I was so exhausted, I started hitting myself. They laughed': Four Cuban asylum seekers recount their ordeal at Europe's borders
The European Court of Human Rights is expected to rule in the coming weeks on the pushbacks experienced by four Cubans at the border between Lithuania and Belarus, against the backdrop of a hybrid war with Russia.
