On dry land: Rescued on the Mediterranean Sea
An Amnesty International delegation has just returned from the southern Italian islands of Lampedusa and Sicily, after collecting the testimonies of migrants and refugees rescued in the central Mediterranean Sea.
On Saturday 25 April, the Italian Navy vessel Foscari brought more than more than 300 African migrants, refugees and asylum seekers to safety after rescuing them from three separate boats on the high seas.
An Amnesty International delegation witnessed the disembarkation process at the Sicilian port of Augusta and interviewed some of the survivors shortly after they arrived on dry land. Those rescued included a large number of Somalis and Nigerians, as well as other nationalities.
It is feared that around 1,700 lives have been lost already in the Mediterranean this year.
Despite European Union and member states’ commitments last Thursday at a summit in Brussels to provide more funding and assets to its border control Operation Triton, questions remain over its operational area. As long as ships do not patrol in the area closer to where most shipwrecks occur - like Triton's predecessor Mare Nostrum - further lives will be lost.
Read more:
‘When I was rescued, I felt like I was born again’ – Ali’s story
Amnesty International's briefing, Europe’s sinking shame: The failure to save refugees and migrants at sea.
Amnesty International received information about a disembarkation of more than 300 migrants and refugees at Augusta harbour in Sicily on Saturday 25 April 2015.
The Italian Navy ship Foscari arrived at the dock on Saturday afternoon, after rescuing the migrants and refugees from three separate boats at sea.
The actual rescue operations were carried out using Foscari's two smaller RIB (rigid inflatable boat) lifeboats on each side of the ship.
After being rescued on the high seas in the central Mediterranean, the migrants and refugees were sat on Foscari's main deck. When we arrived at Augusta port, the ship had already docked and they were waiting to disembark.
Both aboard the ship and on the dock, many security forces, aid workers and other emergency staff were standing by to aid in the disembarkation process.
Most migrants and refugees in the central Mediterranean depart from Libya in crowded boats. Dehydration is a concern since they can spend days on the high seas.
Women and children are the first to descend. After reaching dry land, they are given water and have brief medical checks.
Some arrive injured, not only because of what they endured during the sea crossing, but also what came beforehand.
Any with serious medical problems are taken to hospital on the spot. Some are given thermal blankets to ward off the cold.
As they disembark the ship, the migrants and refugees sit and wait in rows on the dock before being brought to tents where they receive and basic information about next steps.
After the disembarkation process, all the migrants and refugees are asked to stand and proceed to tents. Hundreds here were rescued but around 1,700 have died already this year.
The migrants and refugees then make their way to the restricted tent area, where they are given stretchers and blankets before they settle down for the night. This is where Amnesty International spoke to a number of them to document their stories.
