Five Eritreans take legal action against Italy over alleged pushback
Five Eritrean citizens have filed a lawsuit in the civil court in Rome against Italian authorities for what they claim was an illegitimate pushback to Libya on July 2, 2018.
Libya
Mediterranean: 146 migrants rescued, one shipwreck at weekend
It was a busy weekend in the central Mediterranean. The Spanish rescue organization Open Arms said that it had picked up 146 migrants in two separate rescue operations. Meanwhile, the Tunisian navy said that it had picked up 25 from a shipwreck, with one person confirmed dead and about 22 missing.
EU commission proposes €7 billion plan for Mediterranean neighbors
The European Commission has proposed a plan to stimulate the economies of Mediterranean countries such as Algeria, Libya and Morocco. The goal: To support their attempts to recover from the COVID-19 crisis and to curb irregular migration.
More than 1,500 migrants intercepted off Libya and returned
During the past week Libyan coast guards intercepted more than 1,500 Europe-bound migrants, according to a non-governmental organization. UN officials and human rights advocates have denounced the return of migrants to Libya because they face violence and arbitrary detention.
49 Ocean Viking migrants test positive for COVID
Sicilian authorities have now reported 49 positive COVID-19 tests from the group of 422 migrants who disembarked the Ocean Viking on Monday and Tuesday this week.
422 migrants to disembark in Sicily from Ocean Viking
Migrants and crew onboard the Ocean Viking celebrated on Sunday after they were told the ship's 422 passengers could disembark in the port of Augusta in Sicily. Disembarkation was expected to start on Monday.
'One of the busiest days in a long time' as hundreds flee Libya
More than 1,000 people have tried to leave Libya in boats during the past 24 hours. The UN migration agency says most were intercepted and returned to detention. As 116 more were rescued off Libya, a humanitarian group said that it was 'one of the busiest days' in the central Mediterranean.
Ocean Viking crew rescues 121 migrants, 140 returned to Libya by coast guards
The humanitarian organization SOS Mediterranee said on Thursday that its crew had rescued 121 people, among them 19 women and two small children, from an overcrowded rubber boat off Libya. Another 140 migrants were returned to Libya by coast guards on Wednesday.
Italy-Libya accord, NGOs call for immediate revocation
Various NGOs and human rights associations are calling on the Italian parliament to revoke the agreement between Italy and Libya on the management of migrant flows, four years after its signing.
373 migrants disembark from Ocean Viking in Sicily
On Monday, January 25, 373 migrants on board the Ocean Viking were disembarked in the port of Augusta in Sicily. The migrants had been rescued from three different small boats in the space of 48 hours.
Centro Astalli calls to evacuate Libya after 43 migrants die at sea
The Jesuit Refugee Service in Italy, Centro Astalli, reiterated its appeal for the immediate evacuation of migrants from Libya, as well as the Greek Islands and the Balkans, after 43 migrants died in a shipwreck off the coast of Libya on January 19.
120 migrants rescued off Libya by Ocean Viking
Roughly 120 migrants were rescued by the crew of NGO ship Ocean Viking on Thursday off the coast of Libya. Four small children were reportedly among those rescued.
