A humanitarian organisation has issued a distress call for 80 migrants facing danger on a boat off the Libyan coast.
The Alarm Phone project, run by the NGO Watch The Med, reported that an overcrowded rubber boat is stranded off the coast of Qarabulli, northwest Libya. According to the migrants’ call for help, one of the boat’s tubes has deflated, and water is leaking in.
The humanitarian project highlighted that the Libyan coast guard is not responding to their calls. Without immediate intervention, there is a fear of the worst outcome for the migrants.
Alarm Phone was established in October 2014 by a network of activists and representatives from European and North African civil society. It operates a self-organised hotline for refugees in distress at sea, offering them a chance of survival.
In April, a group of 22 organizations and academics urgently called upon Malta to halt the practice of forcibly returning asylum seekers to Libya.
This appeal comes in light of allegations that 83 individuals seeking asylum were pushed back to Libya, a country embroiled in conflict and instability.
Alarm Phone, an emergency rescue hotline, first raised concerns about these individuals being “abducted” from Malta’s search-and-rescue zone and “forcibly intercepted” by the Libyan Coastguard instead of being brought to safety.
The history of Malta’s interactions with migrants and asylum seekers has been fraught with controversy, including a notable operation in 2020 that returned individuals to Libya and documented aggression by the Libyan Coastguard against migrants in 2021. These actions have sparked international debate about Malta’s commitment to protecting those at risk at sea.
The organizations emphasized the dire situation in Libya, highlighting the ongoing conflict, lack of a stable government, and documented human rights violations against migrants and refugees. They argue that Libya cannot be considered a safe country for returnees, pointing to extensive documentation, including reports by United Nations experts, of the grave risks faced by non-Libyan nationals living there.
In their joint statement, the coalition urged Malta to cease any collaborations that result in individuals being returned to Libya and to thoroughly investigate the alleged recent pushback. They stressed that Malta’s border control measures should not compromise human rights or lead to loss of life.
Among the organizations participating in this call to action are the Aditus Foundation, the Jesuit Refugee Service (Malta), the Daphne Caruana Galizia Foundation, and Humanists Malta, joined by academic institutions focused on justice, equality, and migrant welfare.
