Yesterday, April 1, 2026, 19 people died while fleeing across the Mediterranean Sea. They were rescued by the Italian coastguard and brought ashore in Lampedusa. Five people remain in critical condition. Fifty-eight survivors were rescued by the coastguard. Based on its own investigation, the search and rescue organization Sea-Watch now has several pieces of circumstantial evidence suggesting that Italian authorities willfully failed to provide assistance.
The Italian reconnaissance aircraft IAM4101 flew just 14 nautical miles from the scene of the accident on March 31, 2026, one day before the rescue of the boat in distress, but without transmitting a publicly accessible distress call. In addition, the Frontex aircraft Eagle 2 reported twice on March 30, 2026, about a rubber dinghy in distress. These Mayday Relay calls were 36 nautical miles from the rescue site. Given the strong northwesterly winds and meter-high waves at the time, the distress calls could correspond to the boat’s position at the rescue site the following day. If the Italian military aircraft or the Frontex aircraft had already notified the authorities of the incident more than 24 hours before the actual rescue, this would constitute a serious failure to render assistance by Italian and Maltese authorities.
Due to Italy’s repressive policies, several civil rescue ships are currently being blocked and are not allowed to leave Italian ports despite their life-saving work. Among them is the rescue ship Sea-Watch 5, which has been detained by Italian authorities for 20 days. Sea-Watch’s rescue ship Aurora is currently one of two civil rescue ships operating in the central Mediterranean. On the night of March 31, 2026, it unsuccessfully searched for another distress case at sea. The Frontex aircraft Eagle 2 ignored the Aurora despite repeated attempts to make contact.
Giulia Messmer, Sea-Watch spokesperson, comments:
“The situation is devastating. 19 people froze to death. If our suspicions against the Italian and Maltese authorities are confirmed, we are talking about failure to render assistance resulting in death, and that belongs in court, not swept under the carpet.”
Please find below a detailed reconstruction of the case, based on our own research using publicly available data and information from Sea-Watch’s civil rescue ship, the Aurora.
Reconstruction
March 30:
21:24 UTC: The Frontex aircraft Eagle 2 issues a Mayday Relay for a rubber dinghy in distress carrying approximately 70 people, moving slowly.
Position: 34°01’N, 12°08’E.
21:47 UTC: The Eagle 2 aircraft repeats the Mayday Relay with the same information
23:25 UTC: The rescue boat Aurora, operated by the NGO Sea-Watch, attempts to contact Eagle 2 via radio to obtain further information. No response is received.
23:32 UTC: Aurora tries again to contact Eagle 2. No response.
23:55 UTC: Aurora tries again to contact Eagle 2. No response.
March 31:
00:06 UTC: Aurora tries again to contact Eagle 2. No response.
00:17 UTC: Aurora tries again to contact Eagle 2. No response.
00:39 UTC: Aurora notifies the responsible authorities via email that she is about to reach the Mayday Relay’s location, ready to provide assistance.
00:43 UTC: Aurora tries again to contact Eagle 2. No response.
00:48 UTC: Aurora arrives at the indicated position but does not spot any vessel. Given the poor visibility, lack of air support, weather conditions, and fuel levels, Aurora heads north, following the route the boat might have taken toward Lampedusa.
00:50 UTC: Aurora tries again to contact Eagle 2. No response.
00:55 UTC: Aurora tries again to contact Eagle 2. No response.
01:16 UTC: Aurora tries again to contact Eagle 2. No response.
01:40 UTC: A patrol boat from the so-called Libyan Coast Guard reaches Aurora’s position at 34°13’N, 12°12’E and asks via radio if Aurora has sighted any migrant boats.
11:09 UTC: An Italian Air Force aircraft with callsign IAM4101 is tracked while in the Libyan Search and Rescue zone. The track is located approximately 31 nautical miles from the Mayday Relay position and approximately 14 nautical miles from the position where Italian coastguard ship CP306 will rescue the 58 survivors.
Source: FlightRadar24
Approximately 19:45 UTC: The Italian Coast Guard patrol boat CP306 leaves the port of Lampedusa at full speed heading south-southeast.
Source: Vesselfinder
Approximately 20:40–00:50 UTC: Coast Guard aircraft Manta 10-01 (MM62170), with callsign RESCIMB indicating coordination by the Rome Rescue Coordination Center, is tracked while conducting a flight indicating the search for and location of a vessel in distress. The flight paths are concentrated at position 34°09’N, 12°51’E.
Source: FlightRadar24
April 1
00:23 UTC: Italian patrol boat CP306 arrived at the position of the Manta 10-01 search area
01:55 UTC: Italian patrol boat CP306 is tracked leaving the position and heading toward Lampedusa
09:50 UTC: Alarm Phone alerts the authorities to a boat with 75 people on board, corresponding to the one rescued by patrol boat CP306
11:01 UTC: Patrol boat CP306 enters the port of Lampedusa and docks at the Favaloro pier. On board are 58 survivors and 19 bodies.
14:30 UTC: The Italian news agency ANSA reports that the survivors said they had departed at dawn on Monday, March 30, from Abu Kammash in Libya, with 80 people on a 10-meter rubber dinghy. They report that three men fell overboard and are missing.
In light of these parallels, we ask:
Three key elements emerge from the testimonies gathered:
- The rubber dinghy carrying the 58 survivors and 19 victims matches the type of vessel reported in the Mayday Relay from the Eagle 2 aircraft;
- Eagle 2’s initial estimate (approximately 70 people on board) is consistent with the 80 people later accounted for during the rescue: 58 survivors, 19 bodies, 3 missing;
- The position indicated by Eagle 2 on the night of March 30 is consistent with a departure from the Libyan port of Abu Kammash.
In light of these correspondences, we ask:
- Is the vessel sighted by Eagle 2 and reported in the Mayday Relay the same one reached by Italian patrol boat CP306?
- If it is the same rubber dinghy, what search, coordination, and monitoring activities were carried out by the Italian, Maltese, and European authorities between the night of March 30 and that of March 31?
- Assuming it is the same vessel, was it spotted again by aerial assets on March 31, and if so, why was an immediate response not ordered?
- If, on the other hand, these were two different boats, what action was taken following the report from Eagle 2, and what information is currently available regarding the fate of the rubber dinghy sighted on the night of March 30?
- And, if they were separate vessels, had the rubber dinghy rescued by CP306 already been reported or sighted by other vessels prior to the intervention? By whom and under what circumstances?
