#Ride4Justice – a unique demonstration demands EU action on refugees stuck in Libya

From May 1st to 5th, Eritrean refugees cycled from Frankfurt to Brussels, for 452 kilometers. The ‘Ride4Justice’  started from Frankfurt, Koblenz, Köln, Aachen from there to Maastricht and finally to Brussels, to raise awareness about the inhumane conditions that refugees and migrants in Libya are trapped in. Torture, lack of food, water, and other abuse takes place in human trafficking warehouses and official detention centres alike. The cyclists arrived Sunday evening at the Maximilian Park in Brussels after the five-day bike ride. On Monday, hundreds joined them to take part in a demonstration in front of the European Commission buildings at Rond-Point Schuman. 

News Highlights: Al-Bashir steps down, Libya crisis escalates, Detained refugees terrified amidst clashes in Libya

In this week’s highlights: President al-Bashir steps down after 3 months of protests; US delegation calls for the release of an American citizen who grew up in Eritrea; Eritrean Government accuses Turkey Qatar and Sudan of ‘subversive acts’ for backing Eritrean Islamists; Alan Kurdi rescue ship is still waiting for a safe port; Geneva Declaration on Human Rights at Sea is published by Human Rights at Sea; Report of the Roundtable “Inhumane treatments and trafficking of people in Libya: EU and EU Member states’ responsibility; Fighting continues in Libya; Human trafficking in the Mediterranean Sea operated by Libyan militia continues as conflict rages in Tripoli; Thousands of refugees in danger in Libya; Young Eritrean calls from detention centre in Libya.

News Highlights: Deaths in Libyan detention centres, “peace did not change Eritrea”, NGOs criticise returns to Libya

In this week’s news highlights: conditions deteriorate in the Zintan detention centre in Libya; MSF reports the degrading conditions for refugees in Tripoli centre; Refugees in Tunisian UNHCR shelter driven to suicide attempts; Political and economical instabilly and protest continue in Sudan; UN Human Rights Council discusses lack of progress on human rights in Eritrea; EU’s continued engagement in Eritrea criticised; Ethnic violence and humanitarian crisis threaten to escalate in Southern Ethiopia; Head of mission Libya of MSF criticises Europe’s and France’s migration policy; NGO Alarmphone alarmed by European policy to deter refugees and migrants; and asylum applications in the EU in 2018 decline to pre-2014 levels.