Archive for the ‘Libya’ Category

EU considers increased support to help Libya tackle people traffickers – EurActiv

The EU could soon step up training and equipping Libyas coast guard to crack down on migrant smuggling in the North African nations waters, according to an EU proposal seen by AFP on Saturday (21 January).

Malta, which holds the current rotating EU Presidency, is pitching the idea as a short-term measure to try to prevent a new spate of smuggling to Europe when spring arrives.

The EUs naval anti-migrant smuggling task force, known as Operation Sophia, does not have approval yet either from the UN or Tripoli to operate in Libyan waters.

Maltas proposal on empowering Libyan forces questions whether it is politically realistic to expect that EU naval forces will be able to operate within Libyan waters in the months ahead.

The EU should therefore consider creating a line of protection much closer to the ports of origin of smuggler boats, the proposal said.

This would be in Libyan waters with Libyan forces as frontline operators, but with strong and lasting EU support, said the proposal prepared by Malta in agreement with European Council President Donald Tusk.

An EU summit in December called for increasing support to the Libyan coast guard, which the EU began training and equipping last October.

The Maltese document said the increased support could be carried out by the current train and equip programme under Operation Sophia but said the issue of financing needs to be addressed as a matter of priority for future trainings.

The UN-backed Libyan unity government is seeking to end years of lawlessness following the 2011 overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi but it is locked in a power struggle with a rival administration in eastern Libya.

The EU proposal also raised the possibility of using its ties with Libyas neighbours Tunisia and Egypt to crack down on migrant smuggling.

Malta also wants to set up an arrangement with Libya similar to last years aid-for-cooperation deal with Turkey that has dramatically slowed migrant landings in Greece, which had been the main entry point for Europe.

Arrivals over the central Mediterranean route, with Libya as the main launchpad, are picking up sharply with more than 180,000 migrants landing in Italy last year, compared with a previous annual record of 170,100 in 2014.

The proposal could come before the leaders of the 28-nation bloc at their summit in Malta on 3 February.

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EU considers increased support to help Libya tackle people traffickers - EurActiv

Malta’s ‘Libya deal’ to push EU border south – MaltaToday

Since taking over the EU presidency, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat has repeatedly called for a new migration deal with Libya, replicating the arrangement between Turkey and the EU.

The Maltese government is now mooting the idea of striking a deal with other North African countries such as Algeria and Egypt, government sources have told MaltaToday.

Addressing the European Parliament last week, Muscat said that after paying Libya to stem the flow of migrants leaving its shores by boat, the EU can look into organising humanitarian safe passages and corridors, that would get recognised asylum seekers to Europe safely.

Government sources said that any deal with Libya must include strong investment and an aid package, while technical assistance should also be provided a suggestion that raises the prospect of money for Libya and the possibility of European coastguard patrols placed just outside Libyan waters to take part in the interception of migrant boats.

The idea of striking a deal with Algeria and Egypt was also mentioned by foreign minister George Vella, who last week told MaltaToday that a deal with such countries is on the cards but recognised the difficulty of implementing such a plan.

On Wednesday, Muscat told MEPs in Strasbourg that the EUs migrant deal with Turkey must be replicated with northern African countries, otherwise Europe will face a major migration crisis.

This would effectively see the EU push its external borders southwards. The same sources told MaltaToday that if an agreement is reached, people could be transported from Libya to Egypt and Algeria, where they would then be screened to see whether they would be eligible for asylum.

It is not yet clear how the screening would take place, and while government sources said that all operations must be in accordance with international rules, the way asylum seekers would be selected is something which will be discussed once details start being ironed out and discussed.

Over the years, Maltas policy on migrants at sea has among others included an attempted pushback of asylum seekers to Libya, which came under fire from human rights organisations over the fact that such actions are illegal under international law.

By Maltas own admission, Libya is not a safe country, as Maltese citizens are advised not to travel to the troubled North African country and hundreds of Libyan nationals have been granted protection in Malta.

Given the dire situation in Libya, neighbouring countries including Algeria and Egypt have become a promising alternative for asylum seekers.

Both countries were identified among the 16 priority countries with which the European Commission wants to reach deals.

In return for various incentives, such as development aid and trade, the EU wants cooperation in preventing migrants reaching Europes shores and in accepting back deportees. Countries that refuse to cooperate risk what the commission calls negative incentives.

Libya deal complicated

Muscat has acknowledged that striking a deal with Libya a country ruled by three rival governments and numerous militias would be extremely complicated.

Libyas lawless state, following the toppling of former leader Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, has left criminal gangs of migrant smugglers free to send a stream of boats carrying desperate migrants from Africa and the Middle East.

However, Muscat has said that controversial solutions need to be pursued and that the only way to alleviate the situation is with the involvement of countries on the southern coast of the Mediterranean, including with humanitarian corridors.

Human rights organisations have long called for humanitarian corridors to ensure the safety of the migrants but the EU has so far focussed on stopping boats from leaving Libya.

According to the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) 3,156 asylum seekers entered Europe by sea in 2017.

Over three quarters arrived in Italy and the rest in Greece. This compares with 32,317 through the first 18 days of January, 2016.

IOMs Missing Migrants Project also reported 234 estimated deaths at sea so far this year.

MOAS founder agrees with humanitarian corridors

The founder of the Migrant Offshore Aid Station, Chris Catrambone, has told MaltaToday that, in principle, he is agreement with the Prime Ministers assertion that the EU must replicate the EU-Turkey deal with Libya, and believes that local and regional NGOs could play an important role.

MOAS co-founder Chris Catrambone

But Catrambone acknowledged that any deal could not result in a situation where vulnerable individuals with a right to apply for asylum are sent back to a country which lacks a government authority with full control and sovereignty over all the countrys territory.

Under the EU-Turkey deal, migrants who arrive in Greece and do not satisfy the criteria to be granted asylum are returned to Turkey. This has led human smugglers to exploit other routes to Europe, such as Libya.

Libya is a major transit country for sub-Saharan Africans to cross over to Europe, with thousands of migrants leaving Libyas 1,770km-long coast every year. Over 180,000 migrants are estimated to have crossed from Libya since the start of 2015, with numbers shooting up ever since the EU-Turkey deal.

The adaptability of smugglers has been a source of criticism by opponents of the deal who have also voiced concerns about the conditions failed asylum-seekers face upon being returned to Turkey. The UNHCR admitted last month that it does not receive information on the legal status and location of individuals who have been readmitted from Greece, and that it is not always able to track their location and monitor their situation.

Ensuring the safety of failed asylum-seekers in Libya would be significantly more difficult than it is in Turkey, given that the country is in the midst of a civil conflict, with two rival governments vying for power. Speaking to MaltaToday George Vella cast doubt on whether a deal could be struck. Its a question of if and when Libya becomes stable, he said, while pointing out that despite its problems, at least Turkey remains a relatively safe country. I ask whether Libya is a safe country, and Ill leave it at that.

However, despite the current situation in Libya, Catrambone said he was sure that from a logistical perspective humanitarian corridors in Libya can be set up, adding that what is needed is the political will to do so. Humanitarian corridors would be a valid and sustainable alternative to the dangerous sea crossing, which directly benefits criminals and human traffickers.

It creates a regular and legal route, directing people away from traffickers, and allowing priority to be given to the most vulnerable while allowing pre-selection and pre-screening to occur, bolstering security and reducing the burden on host nations, he said.

Moreover, if such corridors are defined as safe transit from a dangerous place to a safe place, then Libya will have to meet internationally accepted criteria.

MOAS role

On whether NGOs could play a role in establishing and operating within these corridors, Catrambone said that local and regional NGOs, including MOAS, had a lot to contribute.

As proven by the humanitarian corridors project in Italy, governments need the support and involvement of civil society organisations in order for such projects to be successful, he said, referring to a pilot project by the Community of SantEgidio and Federation of Evangelical Churches in Italy, to set up humanitarian corridors that provide refugees with safe passage to Italy.

The project has been running for a year, and through it asylum seekers are identified by specific departments which have been set up in Morocco and Lebanon, before being safely transported to Italy where they are provided with an Italian visa which is valid only in Italy.

It is illegal to force refugees to remain in an unsafe country

Neil Falzon, a human rights lawyer and director of the Aditus Foundation an NGO dedicated to ensuring human rights access in Malta said, I would strongly remind Malta and other EU Member States that it is illegal to force refugees to remain in a country where their lives or security would be at risk.

For some years, Malta has officially recognised that Libya is unable to protect its own nationals from the civil conflict plaguing the nation, he said, adding that Malta has been granting international protection to the vast majority of Libyan nationals seeking protection here.

In addition to this, Falzon said that by hosting 6% of the worlds refugees, Europe was definitely not facing a refugee crisis.

Its high time the 28 EU governments stopped fuelling panic as this is counterproductive, endangers national security and results in human rights violations we see at the EUs borders, and just beyond, he said, adding that Malta should focus on promoting EU solidarity as the key basis for Europes future in this regard.

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Malta's 'Libya deal' to push EU border south - MaltaToday

National Commission for Human Rights warns of humanitarian calamity in Libya – The Libya Observer

The Libyan National Commission for Human Rights in Libya (NCHRL) has emphasized that the degree of misery and tragic humanitarian situation in Libya on both living and health levels has been increased due to the division and political conflicts.

We warn of a looming humanitarian catastrophe if the current living and health situations continue any longer. NCHRL said in a statement.

It added that it stands in solidarity with the Libyans in all cities, especially in the southern region, where people are living under a complete breakdown of all living basic services.

The NCHRL also blamed the House of Representatives (HoR) in Tobruk and the three rival governments as well as all of the parties of the political crisis in Libya for the current deteriorated living, health and security conditions, which the Libyans are enduring day in and day out, especially in the south.

The HoR and other governments and officials must find a way out of the current inaction and paralysis that they have put themselves in so that they can find a solution and revive the humanitarian and health situations in Libya. The NCHRL added in the statement.

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National Commission for Human Rights warns of humanitarian calamity in Libya - The Libya Observer

Regional African powers reject foreign intervention in Libya – RT.com – RT

Libya's neighbors have rejected any foreign intervention into the north-African state as the fighting between various armed factions rages on - six years six years since the fall of colonel Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.

The 10th ministerial meeting of Libyas neighboring countries, held in the Egyptian capital Cairo on Saturday, reaffirmed the need of maintaining Libya's stability, unity and sovereignty.

The final communique agreed on a "rejection of any external interference in the internal affairs of Libya."

The announcement was made just days after US B-2s and Reaper drones bombarded Islamic State [IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL] training camps in Libya, killing around 80 jihadists. That strike was initiated under the previous Barack Obama administration in coordination with Libyas UN backed Government of National Accord (GNA).

Reports have also been circulating in the media, throughout last year, that a small number of USand Britishspecial operations teams have been seen on the ground in Libya.

Following the meeting, the ministers reiterated their "categorical rejection of a military solution to the Libyan crisis given the negative implications for the security and stability of Libya in particular, and for the neighboring countries in general," the communique said.

Libya has been torn apart by fighting between different armed gangs and the two rival governments following the US-backed bombing campaign of the country in 2011, which toppled the country's long-time leader Muammar Gaddafi.

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The uncontrolled flow of migrants fleeing the war-torn state, attempting to get to Europe, contrasts sharply with the mass infiltration of Islamist militants, have seen the country engulfed in chaos ever since.

Libya is currently in a state of a civil war. The ongoing conflict is spurred by rival groups and factions, including IS, seeking control, as well as the internationally-recognized government in Tobruk, the GNA, and the Tripoli-based General National Congress (GNC).

Saturdays meeting was attended by the foreign ministers of Egypt, Chad, Niger, Libya, Algeria, and Tunisia. UN envoy Martin Kobler, Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Abul-Gheit, and African Union envoy Jakaya Kikwete were also present.

Following a full day of discussions, the delegations agreed that only a "comprehensive political dialogue" between all Libya parties is the only way out of this crisis.

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Regional African powers reject foreign intervention in Libya - RT.com - RT

US Removes Libya From List of Zones With Looser Rules for Drone Strikes – New York Times


New York Times
US Removes Libya From List of Zones With Looser Rules for Drone Strikes
New York Times
WASHINGTON Before ceding power, the Obama administration quietly removed a former extremist stronghold in Libya from a list of combat zones where United States counterterrorism drone strikes are authorized without obeying special rules intended to ...

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US Removes Libya From List of Zones With Looser Rules for Drone Strikes - New York Times