Watch The Med Alarm Phone Investigations – 06th of July 2022Case name: 2022_07_06-Eastern Med - 931
Situation: 53 people who were in danger at sea near Cyprus, were violently pushed back to Lebanon
Status of WTM Investigation: Concluded
Place of Incident: Eastern Med
Summary of the Case:
On the 6th of July Alarm Phone was informed by a relative about a boat with around 53 people on bord that was in distress at sea near Cyprus. At 23:47 CEST we forwarded the distress case to the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre (JRCC) in Larnaca, Cyprus. When we reached the people on the boat at 00:42 CEST they told us that they hadn't eaten for three days and water was entering their boat. At 02:52 CEST they informed us that the boat was filled with water.
At 11:49 CEST the next morning, JRCC Larnaca told us they located the boat and the marine police was now taking over. During the next days we tried to get a confirmation from Cypriot authorities that the people had been safely brought to Cyprus and could claim for asylum there, but the Cypriot authorities refused to give any information concerning the whereabout of the people. The people themselves were not reachable anymore. We later learned from media articles that the 49 people from the boat had been pushed-back to Lebanon.
On the 10th of July we finally managed to get confirmation from family members that the people from that boat were back in Lebanon. They told Alarm Phone that during the pushback some were refused to take their medicaments and they were beaten, including children.
twitter: https://twitter.com/alarm_phone/status/1545771898633703424?s=20&t=4eFJUj0h5eoYBJZ3eUpp3A
Other media articles:
https://www.sigmalive.com/news/local/979355/piso-ston-livano-oi-49-metanastes-pou-eixan-proseggisei-tin-pafo
https://www.sigmalive.com/news/local/979006/ektaktos-sto-nosokomeio-17-metanastes-stin-pafoanamesa-tous-egkyes-kai-paidia
https://cyprus-mail.com/2022/07/07/boat-carrying-49-irregular-migrants-detained-off-paphos/
https://knews.kathimerini.com.cy/en/news/syrian-refugees-await-fate-off-cypriot-coast
https://cyprustimes.com/koinonia/diadikasies-gia-epanaproothisi-ton-49-metanaston-poy-entopistikan-dytika-tis-pafoy/
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