EU drone helping Libya send migrants to 'abuse': HRW
Drone
Human Rights Watch (HRW) said on Monday (August 1) that a European Union (EU) drone is helping Libyan forces to intercept boats of migrants in the Mediterranean Sea who are then subjected to "arbitrary detention and abuse". HRW said that the drone is operated from Malta, an EU member. It detects the boats leaving Libya and European border agency Frontex then passes the information on to the Libyan coast guard.
"Frontex claims the surveillance is to aid rescue, but the information facilitates interceptions and returns to Libya ... (despite) overwhelming evidence of torture and exploitation of migrants and refugees in Libya," HRW said in a statement.
Libya itself is war-torn. It is a launchpad for people fleeing from violence further south inAfrica continent. These peole attempt to seek refuge in Europe.
HRW said Frontex's drone appeared to have helped Libyan forces intercept a boat in international waters, without informing nearby rescuers.
It is now investigating how "the shift from sea to air surveillance contributes to the cycle of extreme abuse in Libya"
HRW is a New York-based rights group. It said that last year, some 32,450 people were intercepted by Libyan forces. These people then faced abuse.
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United Nations experts have said acts of "murder, enslavement, torture, imprisonment (and) rape" against detained migrants in Libya may amount to crimes against humanity.
(With inputs from agencies)
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