Italy’s Court of Appeal has ruled that the deportation of migrants to Libya is illegal after an Italian captain deported more than 100 people there.
Court of Cassation says return of sea migrants to Libya is illegal [Getty]
Italy’s top appeals court has ruled that sending sea migrants back to Libya is illegal, a ruling welcomed by charities and human rights groups.
The Court of Cassation has upheld the conviction of the captain of the Italian tugboat Asso 28, which rescued 101 migrants from a rubber dinghy and returned them to Libya in 2018.
According to the court, the rescue took place in international waters about 105 kilometers off the coast of Libya. The migrants included pregnant women and children.
The captain (whose name is withheld in the judgment for privacy reasons) was sentenced to one year in prison for abandoning a minor or incompetent person, and arbitrary disembarkation and abandonment of a person.
However, it is unlikely that he will go to prison because under the Italian system, sentences of less than four years are usually not served behind bars.
The judgment is final and upholds previous decisions by two lower courts. The lawsuit was filed on February 1st but was made public by Italian media over the weekend. Reuters obtained a copy on Sunday.
Governments in Italy and other European countries have taken a tougher stance on immigration in recent years, amid growing support for right-wing parties that call for strict limits on people arriving by sea from North Africa.
The crossing from Libya to Italy is one of the most used maritime migration routes.
“This case law confirms what we have been saying for years: Libya is not a safe country,” said migrant rescue group Mediterranean Saving Humans. Said With X.
Amnesty International’s Italian office also praised the ruling and criticized the government for cooperating with Libyan authorities on migration issues.
“Pushing people back to Libya and cooperating with the so-called (Libyan) coast guard are inconsistent with the obligation to bring rescued people to safety,” the ministry said.
Under international humanitarian law, migrants cannot be forcibly returned to countries where they are at risk of severe abuse, and widespread migrant abuse has been widely documented in Libya.
Back in 2018, Asso28’s actions came to the attention of the United Nations refugee agency UNHCR, which expressed concern about possible “violations of international law.”