SOS Mediterranee and Sea-Watch lead the six decisive rescue operations and rescue at least 37 minors, most of them unaccompanied

More than 700 migrants rescued in Mediterranean waters

photo_camera Sea Watch

The Mediterranean is a liquid wall that is difficult to challenge, a hostile border that sometimes hinders and sometimes prevents the transit of those seeking to completely change their destiny. In times of crisis, this transit increases ostensibly instigated by the precarious standard of living and the lucrative activities of the mafias. A society that has brought with it an exponential increase in the number of migrants in recent months and, in reaction, has forced sea rescue teams to work flat out.

More than 700 migrants have been rescued this weekend in Mediterranean waters, a large number of them located off the coasts of Libya and Malta. The vessel Ocean Viking, owned by the European humanitarian organisation SOS Mediterranee, and the Berlin-based NGO Sea-Watch, with its vessel Sea-Watch 3, carried out the six joint operations responsible for carrying out the rescues. The yacht Nadir, belonging to the German NGO ResQ Ship, assisted its partners and completed the work.

SOS

The migrants, mostly from Morocco, Egypt, Syria and Bangladesh, were canned in the boats. Their main destination was the Italian coast, but when they spotted the rescue vessels, many of them decided to head towards them. According to members of the humanitarian contingent, some had suffered burns caused by exposure to the chemical reaction between the gasoline and the salt water. Fear of being caught and repatriated also prompted them to do so.

"The youngest survivor rescued in this operation is only three months old," SOS Mediterranee tweeted. The starkness of the message exposes the plight of those trying to cross. They are willing to risk everything, even their lives, and so they do. In the first half of the year, a total of 1,146 people have died while trying to reach the other side of the Mediterranean, more than double compared to the same period in 2020. At the same time, the percentage of migrants has risen by 58% compared to last year.

costa libia

"All night until the early hours of the morning, together with Sea Watch and ResQ Ship, we were involved in the critical rescue of approximately 400 people from a large wooden boat that was taking on water," the organisation reported. During the night of 31 July to 1 August, the crew of the Ocean Viking was fully engaged in the rescue efforts, with success: "We have 449 survivors on board," SOS Mediterranee counted. In the immediate aftermath, the organisations had to coordinate to carry out two other rescue operations.

The humanitarian organisation highlighted the poor state of the boats in which the migrants were travelling. Most of them are fragile and makeshift vehicles. This factor, coupled with the increasing danger of the migratory route, has led to an exponential increase in the number of deaths. Up to 896 people lost their lives trying to reach Europe, according to a UN report published in July.

migrantes mediterraneo

The same document states that "741 migrants died on the Central Mediterranean route, another 149 on the Western route and six died on the Eastern route from Turkey to Greece", and nearly 250 drowned while trying to reach the Canary Islands. However, the UN puts the spotlight on the activities deployed by Tunisian and Libyan maritime authorities.

The number of migrants intercepted by the Tunisian coastguard increased by 90% during the first six months of 2021 compared to the same period last year. In this period, a total of 220 people died off the Tunisian coast. The state of affairs in Libya is more worrying. In the last six months, 15,330 migrants were sent back to the North African country, where they are detained, extorted and tortured, or disappear altogether, according to the United Nations.

guardacostas tunecinos

This is the context in which SOS Mediterranee operates. First with the well-known Aquarius, then with Ocean Viking. The organisation accused the European Union of inaction in the protection of human rights, but many have accused the organisation itself of generating a "pull effect". However, a study published in 2017 by Oxford University draws a favourable conclusion for NGOs operating in Mediterranean waters: rescue operations "reduce the risk of mortality (...) and have little or no effect on the number of arrivals”.

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