73 dead in shipwreck off Libya, as Italy’s parliament makes it harder for rescuers to save lives

Meanwhile, two rescue ships forced to disembark rescued in ports hundreds of miles away AT LEAST 73 people have been reported missing and presumed dead following a shipwreck off the Libyan coast, the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) announced today, as Italy‘s parliament made it harder for rescue ships to save lives. “The boat, carrying

Rescuers disembark people the Italian government would have left to drown

THE CREW of a charity-run refugee rescue ship disembarked over 230 people at a port in north-west Italy today. The Geo Barents, a vessel run by Doctors Without Borders (MSF), initially saved 69 people, including 25 minors, from an overcrowded rubber boat in international waters off the coast of Libya on Tuesday. Prior to this

EU-supported Libyan coastguard threatens to shoot at refugee rescuers

Despite threats NGO ship and reconnaissance plane work together to save the lives of 69 people in the central Mediterranean THE EU-supported Libyan coastguard threatened to shoot at rescue workers in the central Mediterranean today after they witnessed a refugee interception. Doctors Without Borders (MSF) shared video footage from its rescue ship, the Geo Barents,

Greek prosecutors drop charges against refugee rescuers

Defendants and activists say victory is only partial as some indictments remain THE DISMISSAL of all misdemeanour charges against 24 refugee rescuers in Greece today is but a partial victory, the defendants and fellow activists said, as some felony charges still remain. The activists, who volunteered with Emergency Response Centre International (ERCI), had been accused

Greek court to rule on ‘farcical’ charges against refugee rescuers this week

Meanwhile, two Mediterranean rescue ships carrying 110 refugees struggle through high waves and 40-knot winds after Italy forces them to sail over 1,000km to safety A COURT in Greece is to decide later this week whether to drop the “farcical” charges against 24 refugee rescuers after the trial today was postponed to Friday, following procedural

Judge orders Italian state to pay for repairs to the Iuventa rescue ship

Meanwhile, European authorities continue to ignore the rights of hundreds of refugees still at sea even after a child is born aboard a rescue ship A JUDGE has ordered the Italian state to pay for repairs to a refugee rescue ship that was left to rust in port after it was seized in 2017. The

Refugees trapped at Poland-Belarus border are freezing, starving and sick, some are being sexually abused by border guards, activists say

Meanwhile, rescues resume in the Mediterranean despite Libyan Coastguard’s efforts to stop them PEOPLE trapped at the Poland-Belarus border are suffering from malnutrition, dehydration, hypothermia, frost bite and worse, some are even being sexually abused by border guards on both sides, activists warned today. Grupa Granica, a Polish human rights and medical aid group, and

Rescuers vow to continue saving lives in the Mediterranean after Italy ends four-day stand-off

RESCUERS vowed to continue their life-saving mission in the central Mediterranean today after Italy finally allowed the 250 people stuck aboard two civilian-run ships to come ashore. The Humanity 1 and Geo Barents rescue ships had been left in limbo in the port of Catania on the island of Sicily since Saturday. The Italian authorities

Italy’s far-right government accused of causing further harm to the traumatised refugees on two rescue ships

• Survivors on the Humanity 1 and Geo Barents begin hunger strike in protest against government’s mistreatment • Mission Lifeline disembarks 95 people in southern Italy • Ocean Viking declares emergency and heads to France • Inadequate translations postpone Iuventa pretrial again ITALY’S far-right government is causing further harm to people already traumatised, human rights

Rescuers launch legal action against Italy’s far-right government after it refuses to allow all survivors to come ashore

Humanity 1 and Geo Barents left waiting in port with survivors still on board as over 300 refugees remain at sea on the Rise Above and Ocean Viking AN ACTIVIST-RUN search-and-rescue organisation announced today that it is taking legal action again the Italian government after it refused to allow 35 people rescued in the Mediterranean