Libyan militias have rejected claims that they are responsible for human rights abuses against migrants. They have threatened to sue Amnesty International over the accusations of unlawful killings, interceptions and arbitrary detention.
Early Wednesday morning, Libya’s coast guard reportedly issued numerous threats against the rescue ship Sea-Eye 4 in the Mediterranean, urging it to leave "Libyan territory." However, Sea-Eye says that the vessel was in international waters at the time, where ships are allowed to move freely.
214 men, women and children coming from countries such as Somalia, Sudan, Eritrea, and Ethiopia have for the past two months been protesting in front of UNHCR offices in Tunis, calling for their rights to be recognized. Alessandra Sciurba, a university researcher in Tunisia and former chairman and spokesperson of Mediterranea Saving Humans met some of them and listened to their story.
More than 4,000 migrants have been returned to Libya since the beginning of the year, according to the latest IOM numbers. The report comes after two boats in the past ten days have capsized off the Libyan coast, resulting in 53 presumed deaths.
A shipwreck off Libya on Monday has left at least 14 people missing, four people dead, and just two people rescued. Nearly 500 migrants and refugees have died attempting to cross the Central Mediterranean so far this year.
On Wednesday, the German foreign ministry announced it would be extending its participation in the EU monitoring mission Irini in the Mediterranean, but it would no longer commit to training the Libyan coast guard, due to concerns about their treatment of migrants. The trainings are part of the Irini mandate.
Libya has reported a rise in the number of tuberculosis (TB) cases, particularly among migrants and refugees.
A UN fact finding mission has been investigating reports of mass migrant graves in Libya, as part of a general mission to establish the circumstances of the human rights situation in Libya and to document alleged violations.
The three young African men, known as El Hiblu 3, have been on trial in Malta since 2019. They face a long list of charges including terrorism, violence and hijacking the El Hiblu. Now, as the trial continues, they have decided to speak out and tell their own stories.
The Ocean Viking private rescue vessel has saved 30 migrants in distress off the Libyan coast, according to its operator, SOS Mediterranee. Attempts of migrants trying to reach Europe from North African shores appear to be on the rise.
Around 50 people died in a shipwreck on February 27 off the Libyan coast. Some of their corpses washed up on the beach of Sabratha in the Zawiya district.
On the five-year anniversary of a series of accords signed between Libya and the EU, human rights organizations have come out denouncing the agreements. Amnesty International says that over 82,000 migrants have been returned to Libya to "hellish" conditions because of the deals. They call for the EU to rethink its approach.