Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders) reported that the European Union has provided €59 million Euros to Libya, over recent years to manage immigration affairs, offering training, boats, and other equipment.
The EU has gradually withdrawn from rescuing migrants in the Mediterranean, intensifying deterrence measures to prevent their arrival in Europe, and deliberately returning them to Libya.
According to MSF, the Libyan Coast Guard, in coordination with the EU, has intercepted over 120,000 migrants since 2017, illegally returning them to Libya.
Recent data from the Italian Interior Ministry revealed a surge in migration, with 47,300 migrants arriving in Italy from Libya, since the beginning of the year.
The data, released on Monday, indicated that approximately 30,000 of these migrants departed from the western region. The remainder originated from the east, according to Italy’s news agency, NOVA.
Italy has witnessed the arrival of 95,000 migrants through Tunisia, averaging 300 daily. This marks a substantial increase compared to 2022, when only 32,000 migrants used this route.
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) estimated that, from 1st of January 2023 until 11 November, 13,611 migrants were intercepted at sea and returned to Libya. Among them were 10,352 men, 943 women, and 494 minors, with nationalities of 1,433 migrants still unavailable.
Tragically, 939 individuals have lost their lives, while 1,248 remain missing after their boats sank in the Mediterranean.
On Wednesday, the IOM reported the interception, and subsequent return of 662 migrants to Libya. This operation, conducted between 12-18 November, was disclosed in the IOM’s latest statistical update, emphasizing the ongoing migration crisis in the Mediterranean.
The migrants, embarking on treacherous journeys in an attempt to reach European shores, encountered intensified patrol operations, which subsequently led to their return to Libya. This occurrence underscores the continual strife and despair experienced by migrants, often fleeing conflict, persecution, and economic hardship in their home countries.