| status | Investigation Concluded |
| name | V_SAR Op 10.08.20 B |
| date | 2020-08-10 |
| patrol_boat | Ras el Jadir 648 |
| prison | Osama prison, Al-Zawiya |
| related_icao | 43ed4b |
| link | https://twitter.com/rgowans/status/1292871793779380224 |
Pushback incident recorded in the Frontex database:
| Incidentld | 147596 |
| IncidentNumber | 412099 |
| OperationName | Themis 2020 |
This was a standard Operation Themis pushback: Frontex’s Eagle1 surveillance aeroplane spots the boat (Frontex acknowledges this in its operations database (“JORA”), where it is recorded in the column “Frontex Involvement”)’ communications probably pass through MRCC in Rome (JORA records the “Reporting Country” as Italy ), who call the Libyans. The whole process occurs under Operation Themis, i.e. it is a European border control operation.
CASE DATA
White dinghy with black front and back. Departed from Zawiya.
85 people on board, including 6 women and at least 1 child. According to the Libyans, the nationalities of the passengers were: Bangladesh 1, Benin 2, Congo 2, Cameroon 6, Egypt 2, Gambia 1, Guinea 19, Guinea Bissau 2, Ivory Coast 4, Mali 20, Nigeria 1, Senegal 5, Sierra Leone 2, Sudan 12, Togo 2, Burkina Faso 4.
Detected by Frontex’s Eagle1 surveillance aircraft.
Captured on 10 August 2020 by the Libyan Coastguard patrol boat Ras El Jadir 648 (no other migrant boats known to have been captured during this operation).
Landed in Tripoli the same day before sunset.
VICTIMS TRACED BY JLPROJECT:
Currently three persons, whose names we will not report here for data privacy reasons, who can be seen clearly in the photographs:
FRONTEX REPORT DATA
| Incidentld | 147596 |
| IncidentNumber | 412099 |
| Operation Sector Type | SEA |
| Primary Incident Type | Prevention of departure |
| SAR | No |
| Detection By FRX Asset | Yes |
| OtherFrontexAssetInvolvement | No |
| FrontexInvolvement | Yes |
| ReportingCountry | Italy |
| DetectionDate | 2020-08-10T00:00:00 |
| InterceptionDate | 2020-08-10T00:00:00 |
| ReportingDate | 2020-08-10T00:00:00 |
| CountryOfDeparture | Libya |
| DetectionInitiatedBy | MAS |
| Disembarkation | Tripoli |
| TransportType | inflatable/rubber boat/zodiac boat/dinghy |
| num_l_MigrantsDeterred | 80 |
VIDEO/PHOTOGRAPHIC EVIDENCE IN THE CASE
There is a large amount of video and photographic material relating to this case online.
UNHCR, IOM and IMC staff were at the port of Tripoli when the pushback victims were disembarked and posted several photographs on social media channels.
UNHCR posted this tweet at the link https://x.com/UNHCRLibya/status/1292870141672390661?s=20 at 19:07 CAT on 10 August 2020. There are 2 photographs (UNHCR photo A and UNHCR photo B):
IOM posted this tweet at the link https://x.com/IOM_Libya/status/1292874188068356096?s=20 at 19:23 CAT on 10 August 2020. There are 4 photographs (IOMa, IOMb¸ IOMc, IOMd):
The Libyans post a thread of 8 tweets, the first of which is https://x.com/rgowans/status/1292871793779380224?s=20
In the thread there are 5 videos at the following links:
- https://twitter.com/i/status/1292887184454934530
- https://twitter.com/i/status/1292892159100805122
- https://twitter.com/i/status/1292895136200916998
- https://twitter.com/i/status/1292897572617691136
- https://twitter.com/i/status/1292919209949831170
This is a compilation of these videos on YouTube:
There are also 9 photographs:
CASE RECONSTRUCTION
Night between 9th and 10th August 2020
23:30 – 2:00 UTC: Between 1:30 and 4:00 Central Africa Time (CAT) a white dinghy with a black front and back part leaves from the port of Zawiya. On board there are about 80 people (probably 85) including 6 women and 1 child. The nationalities of the victims are: Sudan, Egypt, Senegal, Burkina Faso and other nationalities that interviewed victims were unsure of.
(Source: testimony of pushback victim)
August 10, 2020
02:54 UTC: Frontex Eagle1 surveillance aircraft with ICAO code 43ed4b takes off from Malta (Source: flight tracking data) and flies over the Maltese SAR zone quickly, straight towards Tripoli, at an altitude of 16,000 feet.
03:26 UTC: Eagle1 has arrived at the Libyan SAR zone and switches off its transponder before turning east. (Source: flight tracking data)
04:00 UTC approximately: At around 6 am (CAT) the migrants onboard see a plane flying over their boat
(Source: testimony of pushback victim)
04:21 UTC: Eagle1 turns its transponder back on. It is located at 33.521, 14.129, flying at low altitude (2000 feet) towards the west. (Source: flight tracking data)
Between 04:29 and 07:31 UTC: Eagle1 switches off its transponder again. (Source: flight tracking data)
07:31 UTC: Eagle1 is now much further east than its previous position: it is flying at high altitude and is returning north. (Source: flight tracking data)
08:12 UTC: Eagle1 lands in Malta. (Source: flight tracking data)
The whole flight path of Eagle1:
Intorno alle 10:00-11:00 UTC: 12:00-13:00 (CAT) i migranti vengono sorvolati da un altro aereo. (Fonte: testimonianza dei respinti) (Nota di JLProject: non siamo riusciti ad individuare questo secondo aereo)
14:00-15:00 UTC approximately: (16:00-17:00 CAT) the migrants are captured by the Libyan patrol boat Ras El Jadir 648. (Source: testimony of pushback victim)
During the capture, the Libyans photograph the dinghy in the sea (Source: https://x.com/rgowans/status/1292871793779380224?s=20 )
16:00-16:30 UTC approximately: (18:00-18:30 CAT) Ras El Jadir lands at the port of Tripoli.
Timing of the arrival in Tripoli:
UNHCR released 2 photos of the disembarkation on 10 August 2020 at 17:07 UTC (19:07 CAT). So the arrival and disembarkation occurred before this time.
The photos showed UN agency/NGO disembarkation procedures that were already advanced, and victims leaving the boat. The Libyans have several videos of identification procedures that took place onboard the Ras el Jadir patrol boat while anchored in the port of Tripoli, these identification procedures therefore occurred prior to disembarkation.
We estimate that the identification procedures on board lasted a maximum of one hour. This places the arrival of the Ras El Jadir in Tripoli at around 16:00-16:30 UTC.
The landing phases:
The patrol boat Ras El Jadir 648 enters the port of Tripoli. (Source: https://x.com/rgowans/status/1292887184454934530?s=20)
IOM, IMC and UNHCR staff board the Ras El Jadir patrol boat. (Source: video at link https://twitter.com/i/status/1292892159100805122 )
Upon arrival, UNHCR, IMC and IOM staff distribute food, water, provide first aid assistance and take down the personal data of all passengers. (Source: https://x.com/rgowans/status/1292919209949831170?s=20 – and see the “Port Identification Report” in the attachments)
We have translated what IOM, IMC and UNHCR employees say in this video: https://twitter.com/i/status/1292897572617691136
The first employee asks, “Which part of Sudan are you from?” Another employee asks, perhaps to someone else, “Where are you from?” and a person answers, “Guinea Conakry.” Finally, someone is heard asking, “How much do you pay them?” Unfortunately, there is a lot of background noise and the dialogue is not completely clear.
From the photos posted by the Libyans you can see long shadows caused by the low sun, indicating that the sun had not yet set.
17:56 UTC: ( 19:56 CAT) sunset in Tripoli
In the following hours: From the port of Tripoli, the victims are deported to Osama prison in Al-Zawiya.
(Source: testimony of pushback victim)