Brussels (dpa): The European Union's "reckless" policy to prioritize preventing migrants from leaving Libyan shores as opposed to stepping up rescue operations in the Mediterranean have increased risks for migrants trying to reach Europe, Amnesty International said Thursday.
The human rights watchdog's warning comes as Italy has called for greater burden-sharing from EU countries on refugees and has even threatened to turn away ships operated by non-governmental organizations carrying rescued migrants from its ports.
The report by Amnesty offers scathing criticism of EU policies aiming to stop migrants from reaching its shores, saying that unless the EU changed course, 2017 is set to become the deadliest year on record for migrant crossings in the Mediterranean.
The organization said that EU countries have shifted their focus from rescue operations - seeing those as a pull factor for migrants - to preventing migrants from leaving the Libyan shores by building up the country's coastguard.
"This reckless European strategy is not just failing to deliver the desired outcome of stopping departures and preventing further loss of life, but is in fact exposing refugees and migrants to even greater risks at sea and, when intercepted, to disembarkation back in Libya, where they face horrific conditions in detention, torture and rape," the report said.
Amnesty said that EU-funded training for the Libyan coastguard currently takes place without an adequate accountability framework or a system to monitor conduct and performance.
