BEVERLY HILLS, December 12, (THEWILL) – Amnesty International had accused Italy and other European Union (EU) governments of being knowingly complicit in horrific abuses of migrants in Libya.
Amnesty’s Europe Director, John Dalhuisen, made this known in Tuesday to AFP in Brussels as he warned that the organization may institute a legal action against them at European and UN rights institutions.
“European governments are knowingly complicit in the torture and abuse of tens of thousands of refugees and migrants detained by Libyan immigration authorities in appalling conditions in Libya,” he revealed in a report.
“European governments are actively supporting a sophisticated system of abuse and exploitation of refugees and migrants by the Libyan coastguard, detention authorities and smugglers in order to prevent people from crossing the Mediterranean.
“The various EU governments, Italy in particular, know full well that this is going on.
“This system puts Italy in particular very much in breach of its international obligations, especially on the prohibition of torture.”
Dalhuisen added that Italy, the main landing point for migrants sailing from Libya, has “the most sophisticated set of arrangements” with Libyan Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj to detain migrants.
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