The roundtable was held from 18:30 – 20:00 and was hosted by Marie-Christine Vergiat (GUE/NGL Group) and Ana Gomes (S&D Group) together with the organisation Europe External Programme with Africa (EEPA). Human rights activists, journalists, NGO representatives and experts spoke during … Continued
In this week’s news highlights: Foundation prepares legal action against EU over use of forced labour in Eritrea; European Parliament hosts Roundtable on Libya; Pro-Asyl denounces EU push back of migrants and refugees; EU suspends ship operations of operation Sophia; French Constitutional Council authorises bone tests to determine migrants age; 200 refugees forced to leave their accommodation in Greece; WRC reports on the sexual violence practicises against refugees in Libya; 30 migrants lost in the Mediterranean; Amnesty International denounces the human rights situation in Libya at UNHRC; Closure of detention centre Al Hamdi in Tunisia; Eritreans continue to flee their country, says Ethiopia; and the Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan reports a ‘endemic’ sexual violences situation in the country.
On February 24th and 25th, in Sharm el-Sheikh, European and Arab League leaders took part in the first League of Arab States-European Union summit, presided by Donald Tusk, president of the European council and Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, Egyptian president. At the summit, several high-level EU leaders including German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Italian and British prime ministers, Giuseppe Conte and Theresa May, were present. Migration was one of the main topics that was discussed, with the EU interested in giving the Arab League a bigger role in curbing migration. The two blocs have agreed to hold the summit every three years in rotation, with the next gathering due in Brussels in 2022.