| status | Legal Proceedings |
| name | Maridive 20250928 |
| date | 2025-09-28 |
| number_of_people | 43 |
| victims_found | some |
| patrol_boat | Nalut 302, Maridive 704, MVP Everest, cargo vessel |
| disembark_place | Tripoli |
| prison | Ain Zara |
| related_icao | |
| link | https://x.com/seawatch_intl/status/1972595550416675232 |
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Per tutte le foto Credits: Chiara Bellamoli Sea Watch.
Update: Three people have sued the Italian government for its complicity in their pushbacks (We have evidence that the Italian Coast Guard knew about the boat in distress.).
The lawsuits are currently pending.
28 September 2025 – Maridive case
The ship Maridive 704 intercepted a black rubber boat carrying 43 people in international waters and returned it to Libya. Three people died during the particularly violent interception.
The capture took place in international waters, in the area between the Bouri Fields platforms, between 8:00 and 9:00 UTC on September 28, 2025.
The rubber boat is dark in color, and there are 43 people on board, including two women. Almost all of the people are from Sudan, except for one woman from Nigeria (deceased), one woman from Cameroon, three boys from Somalia, one boy from Cameroon, one boy from Chad (deceased), and one man from Mali.
The shipwrecked people repeatedly called for help, but it is unclear who they called. Not Alarm Phone.
The dynamic: Frontex’s Sparrow2 surveillance aircraft has been on the scene since early morning. The Italian Coast Guard (ITMRCC) was informed of the distress at least by 07:35 UTC. The cargo ship MVP EVEREST spots the people, reports via radio that it has seen them, but does not rescue them. The MARIDIVE 704 does not rescue them either. The Nalut 302 patrol boat, operated by the so-called Libyan coast guard, arrives. Frightened, the people jump into the sea and climb aboard the Maridive 704. Three people drown: a Nigerian woman, a young man from Chad, and a young man from Sudan. The Maridive crew then allows the Libyan patrol boat to come alongside. The militiamen forcibly remove the people and deport them to Tripoli, to the Ain Zara detention camp.
Concealment of bodies: Witnesses report that the bodies of the people who died are abandoned at sea by the Maridive crew. One of the bodies is even thrown into the sea.
The extensive photographic documentation of the case comes from Sea-Watch, which provided us with 20 videos and 81 photographs taken from its Seabird aircraft. The photographs are of extremely high quality, but it is not possible to extract useful metadata regarding the time they were taken. The videos, however, have correct metadata with the UTC+2 time zone. The photographs and videos show the same scenes, making it possible to determine the exact times at which all the photographs were taken.
All the video and photographic material belongs to Sea-Watch (Credits: Chiara Bellamoli), and for reasons of privacy concerning the people who were intercepted and pushed back, we are not publishing it, apart from a few low-quality photographs that Sea-Watch has already shared on its social media
However, all the original photographic material has already been made available by JLProject to the lawyers representing the people who were pushed back.
We have traced three young men from Sudan, one of whom is a minor. They can be seen in the many photographs taken by Sea-Watch.
Timeline
September 26, 2025
After sunset: A black inflatable boat carrying 43 people departs from the coastal area between Zawiya and Sorman. Source: witness testimony.
September 27, 2025
At sea: The boat continues its journey.
September 28, 2025
05:00 UTC: Sunrise in Tripoli.
05:12 UTC: The Frontex Sparrow 2 surveillance aircraft enters the Libyan SAR (Search and Rescue) zone, but its signal subsequently disappears.
Dopo le 05:12 UCT: Sparrow 2 may have spotted the inflatable boat, but so far we have no evidence of this. We are filing a freedom of information request with Frontex.
Ore 06:53 UCT: Sea-Watch’s Seabird aircraft enters the Libyan SAR zone, but its signal subsequently disappears.
07:18 UTC: Sea-Watch’s Seabird aircraft spots the inflatable boat at position 33°54′N, 12°37′E.
The boat is already between the Bouri Field platforms and is also close to the MARIDIVE 704 and MVP EVEREST vessels. (Source: Sea-Watch.)
Meanwhile, the people on the inflatable boat spot a cargo vessel. Source: testimony from the people who were pushed back.
The vessel is the MPV EVEREST, flying the flag of the Bahamas. It is a multipurpose construction vessel owned by Maritime Construction Services, a subsidiary of New Orient Marine.
The vessel frequently operates at the Sabratha Platform in Libya on behalf of Mellitah Oil & Gas, a joint venture between ENI and the National Oil Corporation (NOC).
But the ship MPV EVEREST is not stopping. Source: people who were pushed back and photographs.
07:23 UTC: The ship MVP EVEREST calls for help by radio on Channel 16. (Source: Sea-Watch)
07:35 UTC: Sea-Watch emails the Italian authorities. Sea-Watch informs all authorities of the distress situation, including the Rome MRCC (Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre).
07:36 UTC: The ship MVP EVEREST, by radio on Channel 16, reports that the so-called Libyan Coast Guard is on its way. (Source: Sea-Watch)
07:53 UTC: Sea-Watch tries to call the MVP EVEREST, but it does not respond. (Source: Sea-Watch)
07:58 UTC: SPARROW2 calls Seabird, informing it that it is heading toward its position. (Source: Sea-Watch)
08:05 UTC: The so-called Libyan Coast Guard calls the Bouri platform by radio but receives no response. (Source: Sea-Watch)
08:14 UTC:Seabird records a second position of the dinghy: 33°55′N, 12°40′E. (Source: Sea-Watch)
Then a second cargo ship arrives. Source: the people who were pushed back and photographs.
The ship is Maridive 704 (IMO 9603788), which currently sails under the flag of Belize and is owned by the Egyptian company Maridive & Oil Services SAE.Maridive 704 works for ENI platforms through its joint venture with NOC and Mellitah Oil & Gas for the offshore Libyan gas development project. Maridive & Oil Services S.A.E. has several agreements with Mellitah Oil and Gas (partly owned by ENI) for exploration and production activities at offshore platforms in Libya, particularly the Bouri Fields. For example, in 2024 it signed a contract worth €29.72 million.
We are in the area of the Bouri platforms.
The MARIDIVE 704 overtakes the black rubber.
The people who were pushed back testify: “We saw the ship and thought it was a rescue vessel. The ship followed us from behind.”
The black rubber follows the Maridive and reaches the area of the Bouri platform. Source: the people who were pushed back and photographs.
At least from this point onward, the pushback takes place under the eyes of ENI workers, who come out to watch. We have a photograph.
A patrol boat belonging to the so-called Libyan Coast Guard also arrives, but does not see the black rubber and continues on.
The patrol boat is one of those donated by the Meloni government, specifically the Nalut 302.
The people on the black rubber continue following the Maridive, which then stops.
The people who were pushed back testify:
“First the cargo ship appeared, then the Libyan police arrived.”
Sea-Watch then observes that the so-called Libyan Coast Guard is approaching and pursuing the people.
08:26 UTC: SPARROW2 calls Seabird but avoids mentioning the boat in distress. It claims it is calling only because the aircraft are flying too close.
08:27 UTC: SPARROW2 flies over Seabird.
08:32 UTC: Seabird sees the Nalut 302 patrol boat of the so-called Libyan Coast Guard arriving.
The patrol boat positions itself between the Bouri platform and the dinghy. Source: photographs and videos.
The rubber flees toward the Maridive. Source: the people who were pushed back and photographs.
08:39 UTC (10:39 CAT according to the video metadata): The patrol boat pursues the rubber. Source: photographs and videos.
08:42 UTC (10:42 according to the video metadata): The patrol boat reaches the rubber.
08:43 UTC (10:43 according to the video metadata): Some of the migrants jump into the water in an attempt to reach the Maridive.
The people who were pushed back recount: “We returned to the ship and the government forces approached us. Four of us jumped into the water.”
08:45 UTC: Sparrow2 calls the so-called Libyan Coast Guard by radio and informs them that there are people in the water. (Source: Sea-Watch)
The patrol boat approaches the rubber.
“When we approached the cargo ship, the government told us to reach it. We thought it was a large Italian rescue vessel, so we headed toward it. The waves were very high, and we swam to reach the large ship. I tried to climb back onto a boat, and they pulled me out of the water. My three friends were with me; we never saw the other three again. They fell asleep in the water.”
08:46 UTC (10:46 according to the video metadata): The rubber starts its engine and moves away from the patrol boat. The people who had jumped into the water are still in the water. There are at least six of them. Source: Sea-Watch and the photographs.
08:48 UTC: Sparrow2 calls the so-called Libyan Coast Guard again by radio and informs them that there are still people in the water. (Source: Sea-Watch)
08:49 UTC: Sparrow2 calls Seabird and informs them that it is leaving the scene.
Over the following 10 minutes, the rubber moves away from the patrol boat and reaches the Maridive. The patrol boat does not pursue it.
Three people drown.
08:54 UTC (10:54 according to the video metadata): The rubber is near the Maridive.
09:00 UTC: Sparrow 2 leaves the Libyan SAR area.
Around 09:03 UTC, the people are on board the Maridive. (Source: Sea-Watch)
The way the Maridive crew rescued the shipwreck survivors on board is barbaric and dangerous: they pull them up using ropes. We have extensive photographic documentation demonstrating this.
Concealment of a body: According to witnesses, the bodies of the people who died are abandoned at sea by the Maridive crew. One of the bodies is even thrown into the sea.
The survivors report that they try to bring the bodies on board as well, but are unable to do so, and the Maridive crew decides to leave them in the water. The attempt to recover the body of one of the deceased can be seen in Sea-Watch’s photographs.
The Maridive apparently does NOT report any of the three deaths, and the IOM records them as “3 missing.”
09:11 UTC: Seabird sees that three people have been recovered from the water by the Libyan patrol boat and are on board the vessel.
09:19 UTC: The Bouri platform calls Sea-Watch by radio and asks them to leave the scene because the situation has been resolved.
At 09:36 UTC, the situation is still at the position 33°55′N, 012°40′E. (Source: Sea-Watch)
On board the Maridive, the crew (Egyptian nationals, according to the testimonies) reassures the shipwreck survivors that they will not hand them over to the Libyan militias. But this is a lie. Shortly afterward, the militiamen from the patrol boat board the Maridive, threaten the migrants at gunpoint, and force them to board the patrol boat.
“They put me on a cargo ship. Afterwards, they told us that they would not hand us over to the Libyan government. Then government forces arrived and boarded the cargo ship. They threatened us with weapons and forced us to get off the ship. The people working on the ship were Egyptian.”
10:44 UTC: The entire transfer operation is complete (at position 33°54′N, 012°41′E). (Source: Sea-Watch)
12:03 UTC: Seabird is here. It then returns to base.
Around 13:00–14:00 UTC: The Libyan patrol boat disembarks in Tripoli. (Source: testimony from the people who were pushed back.)
At the port, the Libyan police ask the people for their nationality, but not for their personal details. There are also doctors who examine those who are injured or ill and provide food. (Source: testimony from the people who were pushed back.)
16:54 UTC: Sunset in Tripoli.
No time specified: The people are transferred to the Libyan detention camp in Ain Zara.
29 September 2025:
The Sudanese Embassy goes to Ain Zara and secures the release of only the approximately 36 Sudanese people who were pushed back. At least four people remain there: the three young men from Somalia and the young man from Cameroon.
IOM Report
IOM records a pushback involving 40 people (39 men and 1 woman), plus 3 missing, which took place on 28 August, with disembarkation in Zawiya. We believe this is the same incident.
It records them as “missing,” not deceased. This is despite the survivors’ accounts, which describe seeing the bodies and witnessing the Maridive crew abandon the bodies at sea.
Source: https://x.com/IOM_Libya/status/1975196044553261078?s=20
Investigation status:
Preliminary investigations concluded.
We have accessed the files of Operation Themis at Frontex. The findings have confirmed our reconstruction.
JLProject has already located three people who were pushed back, who are in Libya. They can be recognized in the images taken by Sea Watch.
Update: Three people have sued the Italian government for its complicity in their pushbacks.
The lawsuits are currently pending.
Lawyers for the people who were pushed back can request the complete case file from JLProject, including evidence and photographic material.