A lawyer from Egypt working as a cultural mediator on a rescue ship off Libya has described how armed men on a Libyan coastguard patrol boat fired shots 'right next to me' as the vessel sailed in international waters. Yasmin Ibrahim Elzanaty told Al Jazeera everyone on board was 'terrified' after the attack on May 11.
According to Sea-Watch, the German-flagged rescue vessel was approached by a Libyan coastguard boat at 11am. 'First, a single shot was fired, followed by a burst of approximately 10 to 15 further shots – without any warning,' the NGO said. The crew reported that the coastguard then attempted to seize the vessel and force it towards Libya.
The ship was carrying 30 crew members from Germany, France, the Netherlands, the UK, Ukraine and Egypt, as well as 90 people rescued from a boat that had departed Libya earlier that morning. Elzanaty, the only Arabic speaker on board, negotiated with the attackers. 'There was no warning. The shots were fired first, and then we started talking,' she said.
This incident is the third armed attack on NGO rescue ships in the Mediterranean in 10 months, following similar attacks in September and August. The Libyan coastguard boat involved is one of several donated by Italy as part of an EU-funded migration management program.
Despite the shooting, the European Commission said it plans to continue supporting Libya, defending its work as having 'prevented' further attacks. On Saturday, Italian authorities opened a criminal investigation into the captain of Sea-Watch 5 for 'aiding and abetting illegal migration'.
Julia Winkler, spokesperson for Sea-Watch, called the investigation 'a clear attempt to obstruct rescue operations'. The crew issued a mayday alert but received 'no substantive response' from Italian or German authorities, with only a recommendation not to follow the militias to Libya.
The EU has provided over €400 million to Libya for migration-related issues since 2015 and played a key role in establishing the Libyan coastguard. Winkler described claims that Libyan actors are 'preventing' violence as 'absurd and deeply cynical'.
Alamara Khwaja Bettum, executive director of Statewatch, said the EU's 'willingness to turn a blind eye' signals it is 'happy for the Libyan coastguard to do whatever they want to prevent people seeking shelter in Europe'. Internal EU documents reportedly raised concerns about the risk of misused funds.
Elzanaty said it was a 'miracle' no one was injured. The crew rescued another 64 people the next day. 'It made me want to sail more,' she said. 'No one should be shot at for saving lives at sea.'
Source: www.aljazeera.com