Frontex ignores rescue ship - but gives Libyan militia the coordinates of a boat in distress
On Wednesday, 28 October, a Frontex aircraft ignored repeated radio calls from the civilian rescue ship Solidaire, then promptly gave a Libyan militia the coordinates of a boat in distress, facilitating the illegal pullback of the people on board. Sea-Watch’s monitoring aircraft Seabird 2 documented the radio exchange in international waters off Libya, as well as the interception that followed. Frontex radio communications also indicate that Frontex staff share their aircraft positions via Telegram. The incident comes just one day after the European Commission proposed the largest expansion of Frontex to date.
Audio of both radio exchanges and footage of the interception are available with this press release.
“Frontex puts abductions before rescue. What we witnessed off Libya on Wednesday is not an isolated incident, it is the system working exactly as designed,“ says Paul Lovis Wagner, spokesperson for Sea-Watch. “And this is the very system the Commission now wants to expand with nearly twelve billion euros and 30,000 officers. The EU is knowingly funding human rights violations.“
Two Frontex aircraft located boats in distress and issued Mayday relays calling on all nearby vessels to assist. The Solidaire heard one call and was ready to respond. Between 12:06 and 14:17 UTC, its crew tried several times to reach the Frontex aircraft Osprey2. Frontex never replied.
When a Libyan militia asked over the radio for the boat’s position, Frontex answered immediately and repeated the coordinates several times. Shortly afterwards, the patrol vessel P300, gifted by Italy to the militia “General Administration for Coastal Security”, intercepted the boat and forced the people back to Libya.
Frontex also failed to respond when the Seabird 2 crew asked for help searching for two people reported overboard from another boat. Frontex neither responded nor searched for them.
Seabird 2 also overheard Frontex crews indicating they share aircraft positions via the messaging app Telegram: “Osprey2 TS will contact you on the Telegram about position and everything. Until then, maintaining 2500. Position coming via Telegram, Osprey2.“
Civilian rescue ships bring survivors to a port of safety, as international law requires. People intercepted by Libyan forces are forced back to the country they fled from in violation of international law, including the principle of non-refoulement.
The incident came one day after the European Commission, on Tuesday, 27 October, proposed a massive expansion of Frontex powers and budget, making the agency the EU’s “central actor for returns”.