EU–Libya migration cooperation faces a protection crisis

The arrival in Savona of the Ocean Viking carrying 68 people rescued after leaving Libya has renewed scrutiny of EU–Libya migration cooperation, as reported by Maghrebi Week on June 8th.

The EU is presenting this cooperation as a combination of border management, humanitarian assistance, voluntary returns and protection for vulnerable people, while the UN reporting continues to document killings, torture, sexual violence, forced labour, trafficking and arbitrary detention inside Libya, raising questions over the safeguards available to people intercepted and returned there.

Libyan authorities together with armed groups and smugglers bear direct responsibility for abuses, but European institutions also influence the system through funding, training, political support and direct involvement.

Maghrebi Week