More than a dozen humanitarian rescue organisations operating in the Mediterranean have taken the unprecedented step of cutting all communication with the Libyan coastguard, citing escalating violence against asylum seekers and systematic human rights abuses.
A Moral Stand Against EU-Backed Interceptions
The 13 search-and-rescue groups announced their decision this week, describing it as a rejection of mounting pressure from the European Union - particularly Italy - to coordinate with Libyan authorities. The Libyan coastguard receives substantial training, equipment and funding from the EU as part of efforts to reduce migrant arrivals on European shores.
In a powerful joint statement, the organisations condemned the Libyan coastguard as an "illegitimate actor at sea" and emphasised that Libya cannot be considered a place of safety for refugees. The move comes amid growing evidence of violent interceptions where asylum seekers are forced back to detention camps where torture, rape and forced labour are commonplace.
Systematic Abuses and International Complicity
Ina Friebe of the German activist group CompassCollective delivered a stark assessment: "We have never recognised these actors as a legitimate rescue authority – they are part of a violent regime enabled by the EU." She emphasised that ending operational communication with the so-called Libyan Rescue Coordination Center represented both "a legal and moral necessity."
The organisations acknowledged their decision could result in severe consequences including fines, vessel detentions and confiscations of their rescue ships. Despite these risks, they described the move as essential to draw a "clear line against European complicity in crimes against humanity."
This stance follows a 2021 UN investigation that found migrants, asylum-seekers and refugees in Libya were subjected to a "litany of abuses" in detention centres and by traffickers. One UN mission member noted the findings were "suggestive of crimes against humanity."
The Justice Fleet Alliance and Future Resistance
In response to escalating pressure, the rescue groups have formed a new coalition called the Justice Fleet, described as the largest grouping of civil search-and-rescue organisations to date. The alliance will track incidents involving the Libyan coastguard and compile information on legal cases pursued by the NGOs.
Giulia Messmer of Berlin-based Sea-Watch articulated the operational reality facing rescue crews: "It is not only our right but our duty to treat armed militias as such in our operational communication – not as legitimate actors in search-and-rescue operations."
The organisations pointed to a recent Sea-Watch report documenting 54 violent incidents involving the Libyan coastguard since 2016, including shootings, vessel ramming, and assaults on people in distress. In one particularly alarming August incident, Libyan coastguard personnel were accused of firing on a vessel belonging to SOS Méditerranée.
Over the past decade, these civil rescue groups have saved more than 155,000 people from drowning in the Mediterranean. Yet they face increasing obstruction, with Italian authorities blocking vessels from leaving port for a collective total exceeding 700 days under hardline rules.
The Justice Fleet website summarised their determination: "For 10 years, civil sea rescue has been providing first aid in the Mediterranean. For that, we have been blocked, criminalised, slandered. That's why we are joining forces now, stronger than ever – to defend human rights and international maritime law together."
