"In these hours, the merchant ship P. LONG BEACH is again deporting to the hell of detention camps in Libya 27 people who were rescued last night in international waters in the central Mediterranean". Luca Casarini, Head of Mission of Mediterranea Saving Humans, denounces this.

"Yesterday these people, fleeing from Benghazi on board a small and overcrowded fibreglass boat, contacted Alarm Phone to ask for help. AP had immediately forwarded the SOS to the European authorities, Italy and Malta, requesting immediate rescue action. The distressed boat was then spotted by Sea-Watch's Seabird aircraft, which in turn reported its position to the authorities. We understand that the Maritime Rescue Co-ordination Centre (IT MRCC) in Rome took over the co-ordination of the case and directed more than one merchant vessel to the reported position. These included the P. LONG BEACH, an oil tanker flying the flag of the Marshall Islands, operated by Greek shipowners and coming from the port of Trieste".

"It is also reported that last night the ship carried out the rescue of the 27 people at sea. - According to our monitoring, the tanker is currently heading towards the Libyan port of Marsa Brega. This is a refoulement to a country where the safety and fundamental rights of the 27 people on board are at risk. A very serious violation of international law, starting with the Hamburg and Geneva Conventions. A real deportation that is taking place with the direct complicity of the Italian authorities".

"We demand," concluded Casarini on behalf of Mediterranea Saving Humans, "that the MRCC in Rome, in its coordinating role, immediately orders the P. LONG BEACH to reverse course and disembark the people in a safe European port. In any case, we demand that the captain and the owner of the tanker not be held responsible for a crime against the lives of these 27 people. We are ready for any legal action to defend the rights of these 27 people".

h. 9.30am 25 May 2023