News Highlights: Ethiopia’s navy plans, Eritrea takes chair of Khartoum Process, report accuses EU of complicity in refugee abuse

In this week’s news highlights: Eritrea chairs the Khartoum process; France to help Ethiopia in building its navy; the Ethiopian Airlines disaster; Eritrean civil society launches social media campaign against the regime; the UN Human rights Council discusses human rights in Eritrea; Sudanese President reshuffles cabinet; Libya asks support in rescue activity in the desert; Panel on Libya crimes in Geneva; German Government responds to voluntary returns in the context of the EU-Turkey deal, and Amnesty International condemns EU for accountability in abuses along Balkan Route and the EU responsibility in Libya humans rights violations. 

News Highlights: Sudan bans protests, Leaked documents on EU Operation Sophia, video shows abuse in Libya

In this week’s news highlights: Politico publishes leaked documents on EU operation Sophia; Germany confirms communication problems with Libya coast guard; EU-Arab League Summit discusses migration; African Union objects to ‘disembarkation platforms’; Video shows torture for ransom in Libya; Refugees threatened after abuse in Libya detention centre; State of emergency and protest ban in Sudan; Emergency state Sudan used to legitimise excessive force; Eritrea ranks high on slavery list; and militant guarding of Eritrea’s capital Asmara reported.

The African Union criticizes the EU’s disembarkation platforms

The African Union (AU), with Egypt as the current chair state, is hoping to halt the plan to establish so called regional disembarkation platforms proposed by EU leaders during the summer of 2018. The Guardian’s article reveals that the AU member states, in their ‘common African position paper’, discourage African coastal states from any cooperation with Brussels as the EU’s proposition would go against international law and would cause a creation of “de facto detention centers”