News highlights: UNHCR closes transit centre in Libya, EU development aid tied to returns, Foreign aircraft carried out 2019 bombing of Tajoura Center, says UN
31 Jan 2020

News highlights: UNHCR closes transit centre in Libya, EU development aid tied to returns, Foreign aircraft carried out 2019 bombing of Tajoura Center, says UN

by | posted in: Africa, Asylum Seekers, Bombing, Detention, EEPA news and activities, Eritrea, Ethiopia, EU funding, European Commission, European Politics, European Union, Forced labour, Greece, Horn of Africa region, Human Rights abuses, Human Trafficking, Libya, Médecins Sans Frontières, Mediterranean Sea, Operation Sophia, Refugee Camps, Refugees in the EU, Search and Rescue Operations, Sexual abuse, Somalia, Switzerland, Tajoura detention centre, Torture, Trafficking, UNHCR, United Nations, Weekly news highlights | 0

In this week’s news highlights: UNHCR closes GDF facility in Libya, citing safety concerns; Foreign country involved in the attack on Tajoura detention center in Libya; And refugee and migrant women more likely to experience sexual abuse than men; EU and China projects in Eritrea criticized; Ethiopian government allegedly violates human rights over protest arrests and kidnapping inaction; New Ethiopian navy in Djibouti; Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia strenghten ties; East African countries harmonize labour migration policy; Lack of basic support for refugees in Ethiopia; Illustrated story of an Eritrean refugee; Stories of refugee children from Eritrea; EU allegedly uses development aid to secure returns; Sick children suffer in refugee camp Greece; Naval operation ‘Sophia’ might not change focus as member states disagree; And Open arms saves 237 people in the Mediterranean Sea.

UN report: UNSMIL was hindered in investigation on Tajoura detention centre attack by Libyan authorities
31 Jan 2020

UN report: UNSMIL was hindered in investigation on Tajoura detention centre attack by Libyan authorities

by | posted in: Asylum Seekers, Bombing, Detention, Libya, Tajoura detention centre | 0

On July 2 2019, two airstrikes occurred in Libya’s capital of Tripoli. One hit the Tajoura Detention Centre. This attack killed 53 people and left 87 people injured. All victims were locked up in the centre at the time of the bombing. United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) shared the detailed findings of investigation into the attack and highlights several problems to be further investigated. The Department of Combatting Illegal Migration (DCIM), the Libyan organisation responsible for the Detention Center, is accused of hindering the investigation and of contributing to the amount of victims. Furthermore, it still remains unclear who is accountable for the attack on the detention centre.

Resisting Silence; Voices of New Women in the Digital Age: A space for female migrants and refugees in a modern society
29 Jan 2020

Resisting Silence; Voices of New Women in the Digital Age: A space for female migrants and refugees in a modern society

by | posted in: Asylum Seekers, EEPA news and activities, Empowerment, Libya, Refugee Camps, Refugees in the EU, Stereotypes | 0

“A space for women’s voices” is required, as female refugees and migrants are overlooked and not represented in the modern, digital age. That is how speaker Anila Noor, founder of New Women Connectors, opened the debate on ‘Resisting Silence; Voices of New Women in the Digital Age’. As put forward by the participants of the event, refugee and migrant women face particular challenges. These challenges include technological discrimination, stereotyped perceptions and sexual violence. Therefore, many of the participants argued that the issues of female refugees and migrants must be addressed through an intersectional approach, explaining that female refugees and migrants meet various forms of discrimination.