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Today, in our latest joint investigation, we reveal how #Frontex helps the Libyan Coast Guard haul refugees and migrants back to Libyan torture camps.
@DERSPIEGEL @LHreports @libe #Monitor
Main points in this thread
https://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/libya-how-frontex-helps-haul-migrants-back-to-libyan-torture-camps-a-d62c3960-ece2-499b-8a3f-1ede2eaefb83
@DERSPIEGEL @LHreports @libe #Monitor
Main points in this thread
https://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/libya-how-frontex-helps-haul-migrants-back-to-libyan-torture-camps-a-d62c3960-ece2-499b-8a3f-1ede2eaefb83
Our months-long investigation uncovers back channels between Frontex & the LCG. Three Libyan officials tell us they received WhatsApp messages with coordinates of refugee boats. Other types of evidence corroborate their accounts.
We combined ship & plane tracking data with NGO logs & data from international orgs, witness testimony & confidential sources. The reporting showed that Frontex flew over migrant boats on at least 20 occasions since January 2020 before the Libyan coast guard hauled them back.
Nearby merchant vessels & NGO vessels frequently get no notification. The EU has withdrawn their ships. The option for escapees thus amounts to interception or drowning.
Frontex argues that their officers only inform all internationally recognized MRCCs in the region, the Libyan so-called JRCC among them. The rest, they argue, is up to them.
We show that the JRCC in Tripolis, financed by the EU, and the Libyan Coast Guard are functionally the same entity. Libyan authorities are not able to control their own SAR zone. It's clear that the Libyans would not be able to find or intercept any boat without European help.
"Frontex officials know that the LCG is dragging refugees back and that people face torture and inhumane treatment in Libya. Any cooperation with them for this purpose violates European law," said @markard_chair. "The direct contact with the LCG is a clear breach of law."
The EU finances and trains the LCG. To this day, though, it claims not to control their operations. "Frontex has never directly cooperated with the Libyan coast guard," Frontex Director Leggeri, told the EP in March. This, it seems, is not true.
Many MEPs are already worried that Leggeri seems to mislead them again and again. "We have tried to get clarity from the Commission and Frontex, but these new findings beg the need to get the facts on the table", says @Tineke_Strik.
"The EU must be held accountable if it deliberately violates the rights of migrants and refugees at sea. It should stop any cooperation with the LCG and promote instead of hinder search and rescue activities."
Officials at Frontex in Warsaw are conscious of the fact that their main objective is to help keep refugees from reaching Europe’s shores. Some suffer from sleep disorders and psychological problems because of that.
. @bash_deeb explains in detail how we used data and other sources to show what EU and #Frontex are really doing above the Central Med. https://twitter.com/bash_deeb/status/1387738848910774274?s=20
Here is the French reporting by @TomasStatius, with lots of additional insights. https://twitter.com/TomasStatius/status/1387720566153621512?s=20
The Italian reporting by the amazing @saracreta. Also watch out for tonight's #Monitor episode @ARD_Presse. https://www.editorialedomani.it/longform/migranti-libia-torture-respingimenti-frontex-europa-italia-ghbpk0qo
Full story in English @SPIEGEL_English: https://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/libya-how-frontex-helps-haul-migrants-back-to-libyan-torture-camps-a-d62c3960-ece2-499b-8a3f-1ede2eaefb83
We have investigated #Frontex in the past. Start here: https://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/missteps-and-mismanagement-at-frontex-scandals-plunge-europe-s-border-agency-into-turmoil-a-d11ae404-5fd4-41a7-b127-eca47a00753f
