The European Commission has demanded clarification from Libyan authorities after reports that the Libyan coast guard opened fire on the Ocean Viking, a humanitarian rescue vessel operated by SOS Méditerranée, in the Mediterranean Sea.
According to the NGO, the incident took place on Sunday as the ship completed a migrant rescue operation. The crew reported being targeted with “hundreds of bullets” for more than ten minutes. No casualties were reported, but the organization described the incident as a deliberate attack on a European vessel engaged in saving lives.
A Commission spokesperson confirmed Tuesday that Brussels had contacted Tripoli. “We have asked Libyan authorities to clarify the facts. It is their responsibility to explain what happened,” the spokesperson said, noting the EU had not yet considered possible consequences.
The Italian opposition reacted with outrage, highlighting that the vessel used by the Libyan coast guard in the incident was one of several donated by Rome in 2023. Angelo Bonelli of the Green-Left Alliance accused Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s government of silence in the face of what he called “a deliberate attack carried out with an Italian ship.” He urged Rome to revoke all cooperation with the Libyan coast guard, cut funding, and halt future vessel deliveries.
“This is intolerable,” Bonelli said. “Italian taxpayers’ money is being turned into weapons against humanitarian workers and shipwrecked migrants. Continuing this collaboration makes Italy complicit.”
Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi defended the government’s approach, insisting that rescues should be coordinated by states, not NGOs. Posting on X, he argued, “It is the state that fights traffickers and manages rescues, not NGOs.”
That statement drew sharp criticism from Nicola Fratoianni of the Italian Left, who accused the government of hypocrisy and complicity in migrant deaths. He said Rome’s reliance on Libyan partners—whom he described as “bandits supported by our government”—undermined European values and international law.
