NGOs call on the EU and Italy to cease cooperation with the Libyan Coast Guard

On 24 September 2025, 42 European humanitarian and civil society organisations sent an open letter^[1] to the European Commission and Italy’s government. They addressed these two actors because they both fund, train, and equip the Libyan Coast Guard through EU and bilateral programmes aimed at migration control. Italy manages operational cooperation, while the EU provides financing under the Emergency Trust Fund for Africa[2]. The NGOs called for an end to this cooperation, arguing that it supports forces that endanger people at sea.

The appeal followed a serious incident^[3] on 24 August 2025, when the Libyan Coast Guard opened fire on the Ocean Viking, a rescue ship operated by SOS MEDITERRANEE, in international waters. The Libyan vessel reportedly ordered the ship to leave before firing warning shots while 30 crew members and 87 survivors were on board. The Libyan patrol boat had allegedly been supplied by Italy under the Support to Integrated Border and Migration Management in Libya (SIBMMIL^[4]) programme.

The NGOs claim that this incident shows that European and Italian funding has “enabled and legitimised abuses.” ^[5]  They argue that EU-supplied equipment has been used to intercept and forcibly return migrants to Libya. They urge the European Commission to suspend all cooperation with Libya in search-and-rescue activities and call on Italy to end its 2017 Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Libya. This MoU has been implemented primarily through Italy providing support to Libyan authorities for border control and search-and-rescue operations

Libyan authorities defend their actions as part of migration control and national sovereignty, saying they are preventing irregular departures and rescuing boats in distress. NGOs counter that such interceptions amount to unlawful returns and violate international maritime and human rights law.

The letter also calls for a state-led European search-and-rescue mission in the Central Mediterranean and the creation of safe, legal routes for people fleeing Libya. The signatories include SOS Humanity, Sea-Watch, Médecins Sans Frontières, and others. ^[6] EU and Italian officials maintain that cooperation with Libya aims to save lives, though similar NGO coalitions have urged Malta and Greece to review comparable agreements.

[1] https://sos-humanity.org/en/press/open-letter-ov/ 

[2] https://trust-fund-for-africa.europa.eu/where-we-work/regions-countries/north-africa/libya_en

[3] https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/8/25/libyas-coast-guard-fired-upon-rescue-vessel-searching-for-boat-in-distress

[4] https://trust-fund-for-africa.europa.eu/our-programmes/support-integrated-border-and-migration-management-libya-first-phase_en

[5] https://sos-humanity.org/en/press/open-letter-ov/

[6] https://sos-humanity.org/en/press/open-letter-ov/