The European Union is accused of breaking international law by Frontex conducting aerial surveillance hosted in a hangar at Luqa airport that is sharing information on migrant boat locations with Libya. Using that information, Libya is, in turn, pulling would-be asylum seekers back to Libya where they face the almost certain prospects of detention, degrading treatment and torture. An analysis published by the humanitarian organisation shows, “How the agency [Frontex] uses aerial surveillance demonstrates that it is in service of interceptions, not rescues. “The EU and its agency, Frontex, are sending fewer and fewer ships to the Mediterranean, on purpose,” she told The Shift. The analysis reveals that almost one-third of these interceptions were facilitated by intelligence gathered by Frontex through aerial surveillance.

Source: Libya Today December 17, 2022 21:20 UTC