Germany Exchange of blows between Meloni and sea rescuers

Italy's right-wing Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is once again at loggerheads with foreign sea rescuers. Meloni and the German aid organization Sea-Watch have exchanged blows on the online platform X.

Following a visit by the Italian head of government and her interior minister Matteo Piantedosi to Libya on Wednesday for a conference on irregular migration, Sea-Watch posted a message saying, among other things: "We wish them all the worst from the bottom of our hearts."

The organization accused Meloni and Piantedosi of working with Libyan Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbaiba from the west of the country on their "dystopian migration policy". Meloni reacted promptly and accused Sea-Watch of saying nothing about the role of smugglers, who she said were responsible for the deaths of thousands of people. She had traveled to Libya to stop illegal migration across the Mediterranean to Europe.

At the Trans-Mediterranean Migration Forum in Tripoli, Meloni called for an end to "human trafficking", which is "one of the most powerful criminal networks in the world". Libya is an important departure point for migrants making the dangerous crossing across the Mediterranean to Europe. According to Meloni, Italy's government will continue to work to "stop human trafficking, illegal immigration and deaths at sea". Addressing Sea-Watch, she wrote in her X-Post: "Whether they like it or not."

There has been a dispute between civilian sea rescuers and Rome for many years. The organizations are a thorn in the side of Meloni's right-wing government. It passed a law which, according to critics, makes the work of the aid organizations more difficult. According to the law, they are obliged to head for an assigned port immediately after a rescue operation at sea without continuing their mission and bringing more migrants on board. These ports are often far away from their area of operation. Violations can result in high fines or even the arrest of the rescue ship.

SDA