‘The possibilities for change are endless’

Ben Cowles takes a look back at the podcast interviews he did this year, hoping that the words of those fighting back against Fortress Europe will inspire others to tear its walls down “I HAD this moment after our third rescue,” Doctors Without Borders (MSF) midwife Kira Smith says during our interview about the charity’s

Injured five-year-old boy waits for Europe to allow him to come ashore

Having spent three days cramped up on a boat in the Mediterranean, he can’t walk unaided, his rescuers say. He and over 200 refugees remain on the Sea-Eye 4 AN INJURED five-year-old boy is one of eight kids and seven pregnant women aboard a refugee rescue ship waiting for the European authorities to finally allow

Refugee support organisation Josoor calls for donations after donor pulls out following Greek authorities’ ‘criminalisation campaign’

Meanwhile, five NGO refugee rescue ships continued to be held in Italy AN NGO that supports refugees in Turkey is appealing for financial help after a donor withdrew a promise of funding following unconfirmed reports that the Greek authorities are investigating its activities. Austrian NGO Josoor said today that it had previously received a written

Rescued refugees reach dry land after authorities send them on a two-day detour

‘No-one in the governments of Europe seem to even think about respecting human rights any more,’ Sea Eye chairman says EUROPE’S commitment to human rights was called into question again today as an NGO ship was finally allowed to disembark 400 rescued refugees today after it was forced to take a two-day detour. The Sea-Eye

Malta again refuses its responsibility to bring people rescued in its waters to safety

The Sea-Eye 4 heads towards Italy as the mayor of Palermo says the city will welcome the ship’s 400 rescued refugees MALTA refused to allow refugees onboard an NGO ship to come ashore today, despite many of them having been rescued within its own search-and-rescue (SAR) zone. Civilian rescuers on their maiden voyage aboard the

Alan Kurdi freed after six-month detention

A JUDGE in Italy ordered the release of another NGO refugee rescue ship last week. The Alan Kurdi, a ship operated by the German NGO Sea Eye, saved the lives of 133 people in the central Mediterranean on its last mission in October 2020 before the Italian authorities accused it of failing safety regulations and

At least 150 dead and over 1,000 refugees intercepted in one month, yet Europe continues to blockade the NGO rescuers

In the 31 days since the last NGO rescue ship was seized, the central Mediterranean remains the world’s deadliest border where human rights are insignificant IT HAS been a month since the Italian port authorities seized the last NGO refugee rescue ship operating in the central Mediterranean. In the last 31 days, over 150 people

Another desperate weekend at Europe’s borders for refugees and the activists trying to save them

Hundreds returned to war-torn Libya by EU-supported coastguard while the Alan Kurdi rescue ship is detained in Italy for the second time this year IT WAS another fraught weekend for refugees attempting to reach Europe by sea and for the activists trying to help them. The UN refugee agency (UNHCR) confirmed on Sunday that the

NGO refugee rescuers unimpressed by EU’s proposals for a new migration and asylum pact

REFUGEE rescue and aid organisations have been left unimpressed by the European Commission’s plans for a new pact on migration and asylum. Commission president Ursula von der Leyen laid out its proposals to fix the EU’s ad-hoc approach for migrants and refugees at a press conference on Wednesday morning. “We have created a complex internal

Alan Kurdi refugee rescue ship heads to France after Italy refuses to help

AN NGO refugee rescue ship carrying 125 people is bound for France after several Mediterranean nations ignored its calls for help for five days. The Alan Kurdi, operated by German charity Sea Eye, saved the lives of 133 people when it picked them up from three separate boats in the central Mediterranean at the weekend.