# data[].attributes.headline
3 October 2013 - The slaughter of innocents

# data[].attributes.subject
3 October 2013 - The slaughter of innocents

# data[].attributes.body
Docufilm: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0HjMRcMlG9E
5:10-8:15
Song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y-UJEiOlLAI

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.today.it/cronaca/lampedusa-contestazione-letta.html

# data[].attributes.headline
Mare Nostrum (Italy 2013-2014) vs Triton/Frontex (Europe 2014-present time) - Data   September 2019

# data[].attributes.subject
Mare Nostrum (Italy 2013-2014) vs Triton/Frontex (Europe 2014-present time) - Data   September 2019

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/infographics/saving-lives-sea/

# data[].attributes.body
Did migrants stop migrating in 2017? No...something else happened! With European funds and Italian support.

# data[].attributes.body
University Professor refuses to collaborate in cartography project for Frontex: https://www.lasciatecientrare.it/not-alongside-frontex/

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Vessels from the European Border and Coast Guard Agency, Frontex, have been complicit in maritime "pushback" operations to drive away refugees and migrants attempting to enter the European Union via Greek waters, a joint investigation by Bellingcat, Lighthouse Reports, Der Spiegel, ARD and TV Asahi has found.

Open source data suggests Frontex assets were actively involved in one pushback incident at the Greek-Turkish maritime border in the Aegean Sea, were present at another and have been in the vicinity of four more since March.

Although Frontex assets were not at the immediate scene of those latter four incidents, the signature of a pushback is distinctive, and would likely have been visible on radar, with visual tools common on such vessels or to the naked eye.

These are described by the European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR), a legal and educational non-profit, as incidents where refugees and migrants are forced back over a border without consideration of individual circumstances and without any possibility to apply for asylum or to put forward arguments against the measures taken.

Pushbacks will often result in standoffs between the HCG and Turkish Coast Guard (TCG), both of which will standby, refusing to aid dinghies in distress and carrying out unsafe manoeuvres around them.

The role of Frontex assets in such incidents, however, has never been recorded before.

Schmalz added that if Frontex personnel stopped an overcrowded dinghy of the type seen in footage documented during this investigation, they would be obliged to rescue its occupants immediately. "If they don't do that, even make waves [or] instead drive away and then let the Greeks do the dirty work - then they are involved in the illegal pushback."

Despite being presented with numerous examples of the practice, a spokesperson for the Greek Maritime Ministry Greek denied claims of pushbacks, describing allegations of illegal actions relating to the incidents documented in this article as "tendentious." They added that HCG officers act in compliance with the country's international obligations.

Frontex said that the host states it works with have the final say in how operations on its territory or search and rescue zone are carried out. However, it added that Frontex had notified HCG which confirmed an internal inquiry had been launched into each of the reported incidents. Yet Frontex did not say when it notified HCG or when the inquiry had begun.

On July 24, the director of Frontex, Fabrice Leggeri, told the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (LIBE) at the European Parliament that the agency had observed and recorded just a single incident which may have been a pushback in the Aegean.

Our investigation - which looked at the presence of Frontex assets in the Aegean Sea and observed their movements over many months - appears to contradict that assertion.

This was despite the difficulty in tracking many Frontex assets because their transponder information was either not registered, not turned on, or was out of range. As such, we were only able to view a snapshot of Frontex operations.

How we Recorded Pushbacks: Identification of Assets

There were two main steps to establishing that Frontex had participated in pushback operations. The first was to identify what assets had been deployed in Operation Poseidon. The second was to establish whether these assets had participated in pushback operations.

The first step was carried out using open sources. These included social media posts, vessel tracking sites and information published by Frontex itself. We were also able to establish the number of personnel and assets present in the operational area thanks to questions asked in the European Parliament.

According to this response, Operation Poseidon has 185 personnel, one offshore patrol vessel (OPV), eight coastal patrol boats (CPB), one coastal patrol vessel (CPV), four thermal vision vehicles (TVV) and three patrol cars.

In total we used open sources to identify 22 assets, including vessels, helicopters and planes, which operated in the Aegean during 2020. Although this is more than the total given in the answer to parliamentary questions above, some of these assets were rotating in or out of theater.

Tracking Assets

We combined this tracking data with our own database of reported pushbacks, which we obtained through both public reports and information collected by NGOs such as Consolidated Rescue Group (CRG), Monitoring Rescue Cell (MRC) and Alarm Phone, who track these events. These included the coordinates of reported pushback events, frequently sent by the occupants of the dinghies. By overlaying these datasets we identified multiple pushback incidents in which Frontex assets were in the vicinity. Once we had identified these priority incidents we could then examine the specifics of what had happened.

Incidents

Using this data we identified six pushback incidents since March in which Frontex assets were either in the vicinity or participated directly. We have separated these into four "proximity incidents," where Frontex assets were within five kilometers of the incident, and two "confirmed incidents," where we can be certain that Frontex were present at the site of pushbacks themselves.

Proximity Incidents

April 28-29: In an incident we have previously reported, a group of refugees and migrants made landfall on Samos. They claim they were then detained, placed in a life-raft without any means of propulsion and towed into the middle of the Mycale Strait. A surveillance plane overflew the area twice while this pushback took place.

June 4: Two dinghies were reported to have been pushed back from Northern Lesbos. Portuguese vessel Nortada appears to have been present around 15 kilometers from the first incident and just over one kilometer away from the second.

June 5: A dinghy was to have been pushed back from Northern Lesbos. Portuguese vessel Nortada was approximately two to three kilometers away.

August 19: A dinghy was to have been pushed back from Northern Lesbos. Portuguese vessel Molivos was five kilometers away and appears to have changed course and headed towards the pushback before its transponder either lost signal or was turned off.

The boats that migrants use to make this crossing are very basic, inflatable rubber dinghies several meters long with a single outboard motor. Due to their construction, it is unlikely that these boats would be visible on radar. However, pushbacks don't just involve a single dinghy. By their definition they must involve at least one other vessel. From images and videos of pushbacks we have reviewed, it is clear that they often involve multiple ships from both the Greek and Turkish coast guards.

As stated above, ships from both Greece and Turkey will frequently attempt to push the dinghies across the sea border using waves. These vessels manoeuvre in a circular pattern at a relatively high speed close to the dinghy. This manoeuvre is not only dangerous because of the risk of collision, the waves it generates also represent a threat to the overcrowded and often fragile dinghies.

As such, although a dinghy itself may not show up on radar, the signature of a pushback would. Multiple large and small vessels from both TCG and HCG, some of which are carrying out unusual manoeuvres in order to create waves, would be very difficult to miss. Indeed you can even see this kind of event from space.

There's also the matter of visual range. The same factors that make a pushback visible on radar will also make it visible to the eye or other visual systems such as surveillance cameras. Even at a range of a few kilometers in calm seas and good conditions, a dinghy would likely be visible, although exact details such as the nature of its passengers might not be. The other aspects of pushbacks which we have already described would also certainly be visible.

April 28 - 29

In an incident previously covered by Bellingcat, a group of 22 migrants who landed on Samos on April 28 were detained by Greek law enforcement. They were then placed on a life raft without any means of propulsion and towed into the middle of the Mycale Strait by the Greek coast guard in the early morning of April 29. In response to our request for comment at the time, the Greek government denied these people had ever reached Greek territory, despite witness statements, images, and videos showing this had in fact happened.

As the life raft was floating in the strait, a private surveillance plane passed over the area twice at 5,000 feet, once at AM and once at AM on April 29. This plane, , belongs to DEA Aviation, which aerial surveillance services to Frontex. In a promotional from Frontex, it is claimed these feeds are live-streamed back to the Frontex HQ in Warsaw.

Indeed, the Frontex executive director's response to the LIBE committee of the European Parliament indicates this may have been the incident Frontex reported as having seen. In this reply a "Serious Incident Report ('SIR') was created based on a sighting of an incident by aerial surveillance where people were transferred on a rubber boat from a vessel and later on rescued by Turkish authorities.

Active incidents

In two cases on June 8 and August 15, it seems certain that Frontex was aware of pushbacks as they took place. Indeed, on June 8, it appears that a Frontex vessel participated in a pushback, physically blocking a dinghy from reaching Greek territory.

We will first address the incident on August 15, where a Frontext vessel was present at the scene of a pushback, before examining the June 8, where a Frontex asset appears to have participated in a pushback.

August 15

The metadata of this image is consistent with the date and time of this incident. Indeed, the ships can be seen arrayed in almost exactly the same manner in a video filmed by the people on the boat.

Although it is not possible to be certain of exactly how far away MAI1102 is from this pushback, we can see that it is certainly within visual range of the confrontation and the dinghy itself.

June 8

We investigated this incident further, obtaining other videos from the TCG, as well as tracking data of vessels that appeared to be in the vicinity at the time, such as the NATO ship, Berlin. Using these sources we were able to reconstruct what happened.

After initially trying to cross under the cover of darkness, the dinghy was intercepted and physically blocked from proceeding by MAI1103 early in the morning.

We can see the exact time and a set of coordinates in one of the videos we obtained.

We plotted the coordinates visible on the screen as they changed. It became clear these were not the location of the vessel with the camera, but rather the location of the dinghy and MAI1103. We can visually confirm the general location by comparing a panoramic view that is visible in one of the videos against the appearance of the landscape from the coordinates which appear on the camera feed.

We can now start to build a picture of what happened that morning.

We can see that the dinghy was extremely close to MAI1103, and is being physically blocked by the ship. Indeed the two vessels are close enough that it appears that personnel on MAI1103 are communicating with people in the dinghy.

At one point MAI1103 makes a pass close to the dinghy at enough speed to generate waves, a maneuver that previously only HCG and TCG have been seen making. It is especially dangerous due to the overloaded and unseaworthy nature of the dinghies.

Eventually HCG vessels arrive and MAI1103 leaves, resulting in a standoff between the TCG and HCG. This lasted several hours and gradually moved to the north-west, observed by the NATO ship Berlin.

In what appears to be the final segment of video taken at about 09:30 AM we see the TCG radar screen, which can be exactly matched with the Turkish coast. This radar screen matches perfectly with the location and heading of the Berlin at this time, as we can see by overlaying a plot of the Berlin's course with the radar screen.

As well as matching the movement of vessels to AIS data, we can further verify that these videos are from the same incident by examining the passengers in the dinghy. We can see that in the earliest videos, showing the MAI1103 with the dinghy, there is clearly a person wearing a white hood, alongside someone who appears to be wearing a reddish top. The presence of these passengers helps to verify that all these videos are indeed from the same incident on June 8.

In the final stage of the pushback at 10:30 AM it is possible to see the Portuguese Frontex vessel Nortada within 5 km with both AIS data and on the TCG radar screen. The Nortada had been in that vicinity since at least 09:11 AM that morning. Although it may not have been able to pick up this dinghy on its radar, it would have certainly been within visual range of the larger ships surrounding it. After the pushback, the Nortada continued its patrol off North Lesbos.

Conclusion

Over the course of this investigation we collected a huge amount of information on Frontex activities in the Aegean Sea. Most of Frontex's assets were impossible to track because their transponder information was either not registered, not turned on, or was out of range. As such, we were only able to view a snapshot of Frontex operations.

Despite this limited view, we still managed to identify multiple instances in which Frontex was either present at pushbacks, or close enough to be able to understand what was taking place. In at least one incident it appears that a Frontex vessel actively participated in a pushback. It is possible that there are other incidents we have not been able to capture.

In a statement provided in response to this investigation, Frontex stated that it applies "the highest standards of border control to its operations" and that its officers are bound by a code of conduct that looks to prevent refoulement and to uphold human rights.

The statement continued that Frontex's executive director had notified the HGC regarding all reported incidents and that Greek authorities confirmed that an internal inquiry had been launched.

A spokesperson for the Greek Maritime Ministry said the actions of HCG officers were "carried out in full compliance with the country's international obligations, in particular the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea and the International Convention on Maritime Search and Rescue."

The spokesperson added that thousands of migrants had been rescued throughout the refugee crisis of recent years by the HCG, that allegations of illegality were "tendentious" and that the "operation practices of the Greek authorities have never included such [illegal] actions."
This investigation is part of the Borders Newsroom at Lighthouse Reports. The production was supported by a grant from the Investigative Journalism for Europe ( ) fund. Editors note: This article was updated to further clarify that the April 28 - 29 incidents happened over two days, beginning on April 28 and continuing into the morning hours of April 29.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Frontex at Fault: European Border Force Complicit in 'Illegal' Pushbacks - bellingcat

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Vessels from the European Border and Coast Guard Agency, Frontex, have been complicit in maritime "pushback" operations to drive away refugees and migrants attempting to enter the European Union via Greek waters, a joint investigation by Bellingcat, Lighthouse Reports, Der Spiegel, ARD and TV Asahi has found.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
No escape from hell - migrant abuse continues in Libya despite EU concerns

# data[].attributes.headline
Sea Watch  6 November 2017 - 30 minutes of sheer horror

# data[].attributes.subject
Sea Watch  6 November 2017 - 30 minutes of sheer horror

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.nytimes.com/video/opinion/100000005820783/europe-migrant-crisis-mediterranean.html

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
EXKLUSIVE: Full incident of 06 November 2017 with the Libyan Coast Guard

# data[].attributes.headline
Libyan Coast  Guard shooting at people in distress 30.06.2021

# data[].attributes.subject
Libyan Coast  Guard shooting at people in distress 30.06.2021

# data[].attributes.body
Cooperation with Libya

Cooperation with Libya on border control started on February 2, 2017 (Memorandum of Understanding) continues.

In January, the Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of Europe asked Italy to suspend cooperation activities that resulted, directly or indirectly, in the return to Libya of people intercepted at sea. However, the 2017 Memorandum with Libya, in support of the collaboration between the two countries on border control, was automatically extended for another three years. Italy confirmed the support to the Libyan maritime authorities in July 2021 despite wide and strong protests of the people and the associations that denounced the responsibility of Italian authorities in the cycle of violence, exploitation and violation of human rights systematically endured by migrants and refugees (tortured, raped and killed) and called for a plan providing for the immediate evacuation of people held in Libyan detention centers and the extension of regular entry channels for migrant people and refugees."

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
So-called Libyan Coast Guard shoots at people in distress

# data[].attributes.body
IOM and UNHCR condemn the return of migrants and refugees to Libya (June 2021)

The two organizations reiterate that no one should be returned to Libya after being rescued at sea. Under international maritime law, rescued individuals should be disembarked at a place of safety.

IOM and UNHCR staff are in Libya, providing life-saving humanitarian assistance. However, the agencies reiterate that the basic preconditions to ensure the safety and protection of rescued migrants and refugees post-disembarkation are lacking; therefore, Libya cannot be considered a safe place.

In the absence of predictable disembarkation mechanisms, maritime actors should not be obliged to return refugees and migrants to unsafe places. IOM and UNHCR call on States to coordinate so that merchant vessels rescuing people in distress are granted swift permission for disembarkation in a place of safety, to avoid lives being placed at risk.

The Libyan Coast Guard has returned more than 13,000 people to Libya this year, already surpassing the number of people intercepted or rescued and disembarked in all of 2020. Hundreds of others have perished at sea.

The continuing departures from Libya highlight the need for a predictable rescue and disembarkation mechanism along the Central Mediterranean route, with immediate effect and in full compliance with international human rights principles and standards.

Migrants and refugees disembarked in Libya often end up in appalling conditions where they may be exposed to abuse and extortion. Others go missing and are unaccounted for, raising fears that some may have been channeled into human trafficking networks.

IOM and UNHCR call for an end to arbitrary detention in Libya, through the establishment of a judicial review process, and advocate for alternatives to detention starting with the immediate release of the most vulnerable.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
16 June 2021 | Español | Français | عربي

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) and UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, can confirm that over 270 migrants and refugees were handed over to the Libyan Coast Guard by the ship "Vos Triton", sailing under the flag of Gibraltar.

"Vos Triton" had rescued the group in international waters during their attempt to reach Europe on 14 June. On 15 June, the Libyan Coast Guard returned them to the main port of Tripoli, from where they were taken into detention by the Libyan authorities.

The two organizations reiterate that no one should be returned to Libya after being rescued at sea. Under international maritime law, rescued individuals should be disembarked at a place of safety.

IOM and UNHCR staff are in Libya, providing life-saving humanitarian assistance. However, the agencies reiterate that the basic preconditions to ensure the safety and protection of rescued migrants and refugees post-disembarkation are lacking; therefore, Libya cannot be considered a safe place.

In the absence of predictable disembarkation mechanisms, maritime actors should not be obliged to return refugees and migrants to unsafe places. IOM and UNHCR call on States to coordinate so that merchant vessels rescuing people in distress are granted swift permission for disembarkation in a place of safety, to avoid lives being placed at risk.

The Libyan Coast Guard has returned more than 13,000 people to Libya this year, already surpassing the number of people intercepted or rescued and disembarked in all of 2020. Hundreds of others have perished at sea.

The continuing departures from Libya highlight the need for a predictable rescue and disembarkation mechanism along the Central Mediterranean route, with immediate effect and in full compliance with international human rights principles and standards.

Migrants and refugees disembarked in Libya often end up in appalling conditions where they may be exposed to abuse and extortion. Others go missing and are unaccounted for, raising fears that some may have been channeled into human trafficking networks.

IOM and UNHCR call for an end to arbitrary detention in Libya, through the establishment of a judicial review process, and advocate for alternatives to detention starting with the immediate release of the most vulnerable.
For more information please contact: IOM UNHCR
Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.authors[].name
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
IOM and UNHCR condemn the return of migrants and refugees to Libya

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
16 June 2021 | Español | Français | عربي The International Organization for Migration (IOM) and UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, can confirm that over 270 migrants and refugees were handed over to the Libyan Coast Guard by the ship "Vos Triton", sailing under the flag of Gibraltar.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
a report by Watch the Med - Alarm Phone

On 11 October 2021, Alarm Phone announced its 7th anniversary and commemorated the tragic shipwreck of 8 years earlier, 11 October 2013, when delays in rescue by Malta and Italy led to the deaths of over 200 people ( https://twitter.com/alarm_phone/status/1447518820659343360). On the same day, yet another tragedy unfolded off Libya and 15 people suffocated on board, while they were waiting for rescue ( https://twitter.com/alarm_phone/status/1447455425226477570).

As shown in the detailed timeline below, Alarm Phone had repeatedly alerted authorities to the wooden boat in distress with 105 people on board. The boat was just a few miles off the coast of Zuwara, Libya. Yet, it took about 10 hours for Libyan authorities to reach the boat. Italian authorities, on the other hand, just kept denying responsibility and refused to support a search and rescue operation. During this time, the boat was embarking water and at least 15 people, trapped on the lower deck of the wooden boat, lost their lives - probably due to the inhalation of toxic fumes.

Disturbing footage published by the Libyan Observer (TRIGGER WARNING - IMAGES OF DEAD BODIES https://twitter.com/Lyobserver/status/1447855514432442373 ) shows how the 15 asphyxiated people were being pulled out from the lower deck by fellow travellers. The video was shot by the so-called Libyan coastguard, who was evidently NOT helping to retrieve the bodies or checking on the health condition of the rescued - some people might still have been alive. Instead, they just watched and filmed.

In 2014, the Alarm Phone was launched with the aim of preventing deaths due to delays in rescue and non-assistance. Over the past seven years, the situation has only worsened, with the creation of the so-called Libyan search and rescue zone and the so-called Libyan coastguard.

On 11 October 2021, as in several other cases over the past years, we witnessed once again how the task of the so-called Libyan coastguard is not to rescue people, but to deter people from reaching Europe, on Europe's behalf. To Europe, it does not matter whether people drown or are forced back to Libya: what counts is that they do not touch European soil, no matter the human costs.

This tragedy happened at the same time as thousands of migrants in Libya fear for their lives as they are being hunted down, threatened, detained, and killed by militias and police forces (See: https://twitter.com/RefugeesinLibya). EU member states keep on ignoring the ongoing disaster and continue their collaboration with the Libyan authorities and the UNHCR continuously claims that they cannot provide sufficient assistance.

We are angry, sad, and tired. We stand in solidarity with the families and friends of the 15 people whose lives were stolen by the EU border regime. We demand an immediate end to this organised violence, and this organised abandonment. We demand the abolition of this racist system that produces nothing but suffering and death. We demand to stop killing people at EU borders, to stop financing the so-called Libyan coastguard, to stop financing Frontex operations. We demand the freedom of movement for all.
TIMELINE - 11 October 2021
04:04 CEST - A group of about 105 people in distress calls Alarm Phone via a satellite phone. We later find out that they had departed from Zuwara the evening before. We can hear people screaming in the background. The situation on board appears very critical already in this first call and we do not manage to gather key information about the boat and its GPS position.

05:21 - After several attempts to communicate with the people in distress, we manage to receive the first GPS position of the boat: N33°07′, E12°09′.

05:35 - Alarm Phone speaks again with the people in distress to confirm the position and they read the following: N33°05′, E12°09′. The call breaks. Alarm Phone tries to re-establish contact to confirm key information, whilst being engaged in several other distress cases in other maritime regions.

06:02 - The people in distress call again and report that people are dying and that they want to be rescued as soon as possible, even if it means being returned to Libya.

06:10 - Alarm Phone sends the first mail to Italian, Maltese and Libyan authorities, with several NGOs and international organisations in cc, mentioning that the travellers in distress reported that 2 people died.
06:38 - Alarm Phone tries to reach the so-called Libyan Coastguard and Zuwara Coastal Police via phone on several phone numbers, but in vain, as nobody answers the calls. 06:46 - Alarm Phone calls the Italian coastguard, Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre in Rome, and informs them about the distress situation. They answer that we should try again to call Libyan authorities and hang up.
07:15 - The people in distress keep calling and say that the engine stopped, and their boat is sinking. They read an updated GPS position: N 33°04′, E 012°10.

07:35 - We manage to reach a Lieutenant Colonel of the so-called Libyan coastguard, who asks Alarm Phone to send an updated position and promises they will send an asset.

07:40 - The people call again and read a new position: N33°04′, E012°10, which we forward to all authorities.

08:30 - Alarm Phone speaks to the people in distress again. They tell us that there are 5 pregnant women and 10 children on board. Communication keeps being difficult.

08:55 - Alarm Phone starts making public pressure for rescue and tweets: About 105 people are in danger off #Zuwara, #Libya, incl. pregnant women and approx. 10 children. According to people, the weather is deteriorating. We alerted relevant authorities and demand that a rescue operation is immediately launched! #DontLetThemDrown twitter.com/alarm_phone/status/1447455425226477570

10:22 - The people in distress call Alarm Phone and say that they can see a boat approaching them. They think it is a rescue asset, but eventually it does not come close enough. We then realise it was a fishing vessel which left again without helping.

10:48 - The aircraft Seabird of Sea Watch is flying towards the distress case. Seabird reports a boat roughly at N33°00′, E012°13′, and confirms that a fishing vessel in the vicinity is leaving the scene.

11:10 - The colonel of the so-called Libyan coastguard lets Alarm Phone know that their vessel is underway, and that they will keep Alarm Phone updated.

11:56 - The people on board lose their satellite phone and keep communicating with Alarm Phone via their mobile phone and WhatsApp. Alarm Phone is also contacted by a relative of someone on the boat, who is himself in contact with the people in distress.

13:19 - The colonel of the so-called Libyan coastguard confirms their vessel is still searching but could not find the people in distress.

13:19 - Alarm Phone tweets an update: ~7 hours since our first alert to authorities, the so-called Libyan Coastguards allege they have launched a search and rescue operation but people on board continue to report their situation is critical. They need to be rescued right now. #DontLetThemDrown https://twitter.com/alarm_phone/status/1447522179600506882

14:11 - The relative of one of the people on the boat calls Alarm Phone after speaking to the people in distress. He confirms that the people are still in distress at sea. He reports that according to the people on board water is entering the boat, that it is a double deck boat and that both engines are broken. He also sends an updated position of the people in distress: N32°58′, E012°12 received [email protected]:00 CEST - Alarm Phone forwards this position to authorities at 14:31.
14:19 - The colonel of the so-called Libyan coastguard informs Alarm Phone that the so-called Libyan coastguard might have found the boat and is now engaged in a rescue operation. He reports that there are dead people on board and that the boat is sinking.
14:52 - The colonel of the so-called Libyan coastguard informs Alarm Phone that their asset is still on scene and engaged in the 'rescue' operation. He confirms that the boat is embarking water and that people are piled on each other. He reports that there are dead bodies inside the boat and that it is difficult to get them because the boat is sinking and about to capsize.

18:12 - The colonel reports to Alarm Phone that the Sabratha vessel of the so-called Libyan coastguard recovered 14 dead bodies. He still does not know how many people were found alive.

22:05 - UNHCR Libya tweets an update about two boats intercepted off Libya ( https://t.co/A0GYHypYKb): "Bodies of 15 persons recovered as 2 boats arrived at Tripoli Naval Base this evening. 177 survivors were provided aid, some in need of urgent medical help by UNHCR and partner, @RESCUEorg. The passengers had set off from Zwara and Alkhoms the night before (2 boats)."

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
a report by Watch the Med - Alarm Phone On 11 October 2021, Alarm Phone announced its 7th anniversary and commemorated the tragic shipwreck of 8 years earlier, 11 October 2013, when delays in rescue by Malta and Italy led to the deaths of over 200 people ( https://twitter.com/alarm_phone/status/1447518820659343360).

# data[].attributes.body
The Pandemic

On April 7, 2020 Italy closed its ports for disembarkation and declared that, due to the pandemic, the country was not a safe place for rescue by foreign-flagged ships outside its search and rescue region. The measure seemed to target NGO ships that were often left at sea for days without instructions after rescue. When the transfer to Italy was authorized, the rescued people were quarantined on large ships, usually for two weeks, before being transferred ashore. Hundreds of refugees and migrants arrived independently, mostly on the island of Lampedusa, causing severe overcrowding in the local reception center. It was difficult for refugees and migrants on the island to adhere to the rules on physical distancing and the quarantine period was reset with each new arrival.

In October, an unaccompanied 15-year-old boy from the Ivory Coast died in a hospital in Palermo, after passing quarantine on a ship where doctors had requested early disembarkation due to his deteriorating health. He reportedly showed signs of torture suffered in Libya.

Security Decrees

In December, 2020 parliament reformed the two security laws, known as "security decrees", passed in 2018 and 2019, which forbid NGOs Vessels to enter territorial waters and imposed heavy administrative penalties for them. The 2018 decre ealso abolished humanitarian protection thus denying regular status to about 37,000 people. The protection was restored with law 173/2020.

Criminalization of solidarity

The authorities continues to penalize NGOs for their rescue activities at sea. The ships are inspected and seized and fines are repeatedly imposed.

There have been some positive developments for relief NGOs. In February, the Court of Cassation of Rome ruled the illegality of the arrest of the captain of the Sea Watch 3, Carola Rackete, in June 2019, after she entered the territorial waters despite the prohibition of the authorities. The court ruled that it was fulfilling its duty to rescue people at sea and that a rescue operation ends with disembarkation in a safe place.

In courts in these days

Many Courts are stating that rescue at sea cannot be criminalised, it is an obligation and are not sentencing NGOs that refuse to take migrants back to Libya. In the meantime, in October, the trial against the former Minister of the Interior began in Catania. He is accused of unlawful deprivation of liberty of over 100 people rescued on the Italian coast guard ship Gregoretti in July 2019.

# data[].attributes.headline
Criminalization of solidarity: Mimmo Lucano and Riace

# data[].attributes.subject
Criminalization of solidarity: Mimmo Lucano and Riace

# data[].attributes.body
It was the wind...
https://www.bbc.com/news/in-pictures-37289713

https://time.com/6104836/domenico-lucano-riace-mimmo-migrant-mayor/

https://www.youthreporter.eu/de/beitrag/when-solidarity-becomes-a-crime.17164/#.YYVth71KhZ0

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Un paese di Calabria - Trailer Ufficiale

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
11 October 2021 - The Abolish Frontex network has written an open letter to the Italian government in solidarity with Mimmo Lucano, the mayor who was recently convicted to 13 years in prison for his support for people on the move. The letter was signed by 172 civil society groups and organisations.

Mr Mario Draghi, President of the Ministers CouncilMs Luciana Lamorgese, Minister of InteriorMs Marta Cartabia, Minister of Justice

As civil society groups and organisations, we were disgusted by the first-degree sentence given to Domenico 'Mimmo' Lucano by the court of Locri and express our full solidarity with Mimmo. The sentence is shameful and unjust and embodies the rightwing and racist migration policies that are being entrenched in Europe. We are calling on the Italian government and all concerned authorities to exonerate Domenico Lucano immediately and to stop its hostile migration policies.

Mimmo Lucano's actions as mayor were a lived, tangible example of life in solidarity. They demonstrated that inclusion, justice and social provision are possible and can reverse the tide of racism and xenophobia. His sentence doesn't reflect justice, but rather shines in the light of racist political agendas which criminalise solidarity and fortify Europe's walls.

Over 44,764 people have been killed by the militarised policies at the border s of Fortress Europe since 1993. Thousands more are brutally criminalised , repressed and op p ressed after they reach Europe - every day is a struggle . EU M ember S tates are using violent and illegal tactics to force asylum seekers back across their borders as part of operations funded by the EU. Evidence gathered by numerous r eports reveal that migrants have been beaten and shot at in recent months during so-called "pushback" operations carried out by masked men in Croatia, Romania and Greece. This in addition to the infamous interceptions and p ushbacks carried out by the so-called Libyan coastguard which is funded by the EU and trained by the Italian navy.

European states are failing to provide safe routes, shelter and other support to people on the move. They are failing to rescue people in distress and to address their own responsibility and complicity in forcing people to move. . While the EU and European governments deny responsibility and refrain from serving International law, NGOs, activists and people like Mimmo Lucano step in and show solidarity in praxis. Europe is outsourcing its international obligations to civil society.

These protests are often met with state and police repression. Solidarity is often criminalised. Search and Rescue ships have been confiscated and crews have been arrested; as have other people supporting people on the move and taking action against Europe's deadly border policies and institutions. Places squatted for shelter have been evicted, food and aid distributions at border crossings disrupted, uprisings in asylum and detention centers have been violently crushed, people have been put in isolation cells, have been denied medical and legal assistance and have been violently deported.

Europe is built on a history of colonialism, slavery, imperialism, extractivism and exploitation that continues today. The EU's border policies institutionalise this violence, injustice and inequality. The EU and its M ember S tates should take responsibility for this and build community not walls. The current course is not solving any issues but instead violently externalises them - as exemplified by Italy's close cooperation and financial and material support for the Libyan coast guard, constantly guilty of violence and pullbacks against people on the move.

We stand in solidarity with people on the move and those who support them, unwaveringly. Everyone should be free to move and live - b ut no one should be forced to move . The militari s ation of borders is not the solution. Other migration policies are possible and necessary, based on the analysis of the causes and responsibilities of forced migration, based on solidarity.
Free Mimmo and end the persecution of people on the move and those who support them. Solidarity will never be a crime. Signed:
6000 Sardine AlessandriaComité Surveillance Otan
Δίκτυο Κοινωνικής Υποστήριξης Προσφύγων και Μεταναστών/ριών - Network of Social Support to Refugees and Migrants, Athens/Greece
Δίκτυο για τα Πολιτικά και Κοινωνικά Δικαιώματα - Network for Political and Social Rights, Greece
Στέκι Μεταναστών/τριών - Migrants Social Center, Athens/Greece
Actrices et Acteurs des Temps Présents, Belgique
Agir Pour la Paix
All Included Amsterdam
altropaese
ANPI sezione di Induno Olona
ASI associazione solidarietà intetnazionale
Asocistia CUTRA
Assemblea antirazzista, antifascista di Vicofaro-Pistoia
Association d'aide aux migration en situation vulnérable AMSV Maroc
Associazione Cinema e Diritti
Associazione culturale Giovanni Ruggiero
Associazione culturale M.Arte Reggio Calabria
Associazione Culturale Têtes de Bois
Associazione La Strada Reggio Calabria
Association Longo maï
Associazione Mare Aperto
Ass. Mila donnambiente-Pescara
ASSOCIAZIONE NAZIONALE PER LA PACE
Associazione Peppino Impastato Cinisi
Associazione per la Pace
Associazione per la pace Milano
Associazione Rete Radié Resch Castelfranco Veneto
Associazione Shukran Somalia Onlus
Attac Bruxelles
Barnim für alle
Be Free cooperativa sociale contro tratta violenza discriminazioni
Biblioteca delle donne bruzie
borderline-europe
Borderline Sicilia
Border Violence Monitoring Network (BVMN)
BOZA Fii
Brecht Eisler Koor Brussel
Bruxelles Panthères ( Belgium )
CADI
CAI
CALIF ASBL
Casa delle donne di Milano
Causons
Centre for Peace Studies, Zagreb, Croatia
Centre Bruxellois d'Action Interculturelle - CBAI [Belgium]
Centre d'action interculturelle de la province de Namur (Belgium)
Centre d'Action Sociale Italien (CASI-UO asbl)
CGSP-ACOD ALR-LRB BRUXELLES
Channel Rescue
Circolo "che Guevara" Prc Verbicaro
Cisda (coordinamento italiano sostegno donne afghane)
Collectif Charleroi Solidarité Migrant.e.s
Collectif Joli Bois Aubange Messancy
Collectif Migrations Libres
Collectif Réfugiés du Vaucluse
Comitato Nuovi Desaparecidos
Comitato Undici Giugno-Milano
Comité pour une Nation Refuge

Comunità
Cooperativa Impresa Sociale "Della Terra contadinanza necessaria" ETS
Coordination wallonne des Collectifs et Associations venant en aide aux personnes migrantes en transit
CS&L Consorzio Sociale
Donne in Nero Napoli
Ecofem e sostenibilità
ecologistas en acción Granada
écolo j
Emergency
End Deportations Belfast
Europecares e.V.
FEDERATION NATIONALS DU SECTEUR AGRICOLE MAROC
Festival del Cinema dei Diritti Umani di Napoli
Fluechtlingsrat Hamburg e.V. (Refugee Council)
Fondazione per l' Accessibilita attraverso l'Informatica
Forum Nord-Sud asbl (Bruxelles, Belgique)
FragDenStaat
GAO Cooperazione Internazionale
Genappe Solidaire Belgium
Gentegreen Napoli
GRIDAS - Gruppo Risveglio dal Sonno - Napoli
Groupe de solidarité internationale de Boitsfort (Bruxelles)
Groupe montois de soutien aux sans-papiers
GruppoMelitea Italy
Humans before borders
In-Exile
IPAM
Jeunes FGTB
JIMUEL Internet Medics for life
Josi & Loni Project
Karelian Institute, University of Eastern Finland
Komitee für Grundrechte und Demokratie e.V. Köln, Germany
LABAS
Laboratorio di Salute Popolare Bologna
la compagnie des six faux nez
La mano sulla roccia
Las Lloronas
Le Cinque Stagioni
Le KIOSK
Le Monde des Possibles ASBL (Belgium)
Le MONTY, Genappe
Le Morti Contro Le Morti In Mare
Le Moulin
Les Amis du Monde diplomatique - Belgique asbl
Le Steki
Le veglie contro le morti in mare
Le Veglie contro le morti in mare Milano
Liège hébergement citoyen
Linea d'Ombra ODV
Mani Rosse Antirazziste
Mani Rosse Antirazziste, Roma
Mare Liberum
Mediterranea Berlin e.V.
Mediterranea Pescara
Mediterranea Torino
MetaMeta
Migrant 2 Migrant Foundation
Migration Control Network
MISSION LIFELINE
Movies that matter
Mroky
Netzwerk NoBorder. NoProblem
No Border Network The Netherlands
No Borders Rheinland
No Name Kitchen
ObsPol - Police Violence Observatory
Öko & Fair Umweltzentrum Gauting
OMCT EUROPE
Organisation pour une Citoyenneté Universelle
Osservatorio Solidarietà-Carta di Milano
People for Peace, London, Ontario, Canada
Picnic. Letterario. di Napoli
Plateforme citoyenne - Belrefugees
Plateforme citoyenne de soutien aux réfugiés.
Platform of Filipino Organizations in Europe
Progress Lawyers Network Brussels
Push-Back Alarm Austria
Quinoa
Refugees' Platform
Réseau ADES (Belgium)
RESPECT Network Europe
Rete Apriti Scuola
RetePortoSicuro
România - Țara Muncii Ieftine (Romania - Cheap Labour Country) collective
Rowing Together
Scuola di formazione Antonino Caponnetto
SCI Projet Internationaux
Sea-Eye
Sea-Watch
Seebrücke
Seebrücke Mainz
Seebrücke Neustadt
Seebrücke Schweiz
SHARE FORUM de MIGRANTS [Belgium]
SINAC - Solidarity is not a crime (Belgique)
Solidary Wheels No Borders for Human Rights
Statewatch
Stichting CAAT Projects, Netherlands
Stop Fuelling War
Stop the War on Migrants (NL)
Storie ribelli. Micro storie di ragazzi e ragazze a Mafiopoli con Peppino Impastato
Tesserae Urban Social Research, Berlin
The Polity of Literature
TOF Théâtre
Transnational Institute
Veglie contro le morti in mare
Volt Europa
Vrije Bond Utrecht
WatchTheMEd Alarm-Phone
We'll Come United
We'll Come United Berlin-Brandenburg
Women Against Borders
YaBasta! Bologna
Zezi Gruppo Operaio Pomigliano d'Arco ( Napoli)

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Sign our open letter in solidarity with Mimmo Lucano!

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
11 October 2021 - The Abolish Frontex network has written an open letter to the Italian government in solidarity with Mimmo Lucano, the mayor who was recently convicted to 13 years in prison for his support for people on the move. The letter was signed by 172 civil society groups and organisations.

# data[].attributes.headline
Mare Nostro che non sei nei cieli - Erri De Luca

# data[].attributes.subject
Mare Nostro che non sei nei cieli - Erri De Luca