News Highlights: “No proof of Eritrean withdrawal,” states UN,  Alleged trafficker Bija freed, Italian prosecutors wiretapped journalists 
16 Apr 2021

News Highlights: “No proof of Eritrean withdrawal,” states UN,  Alleged trafficker Bija freed, Italian prosecutors wiretapped journalists 

by | posted in: Africa, EEPA news and activities, Eritrea, Ethiopia, European Union, Horn of Africa region, Human Rights abuses, Human Trafficking, Libya, Médecins Sans Frontières, Mediterranean Sea, Migration, Refugee Camps, Refugees in the EU, Starvation, Trafficking, Trauma, Weekly news highlights | 0

In this week’s news highlights: UN states there is “no proof of Eritrean withdrawal” from Tigray in UNSC meeting; Doctors report rapes of women in Tigray committed by Ethiopian and Eritrean armies; Reporters Without Borders seeks higher review in case of Dawit Isaak; Alex de Waal argues that the World Bank should stop funding Ethiopia; World Food Program halves South Sudan refugee food rations due to funding issues; Kenya’s High Court temporarily suspends the shutting down of refugee camps; Rising violence in Sudan leaves thousands of refugees displaced; Over 40 refugees drowned near Djibouti; Libya releases alleged human trafficker from prison; One dead and two injured in Libyan migrant facility centre shooting; CEAR warns of new ‘containment policy for migrants’ in Canary Islands; Four deaths recorded off Canary Islands; Italian prosecutors wiretapped journalists and human rights organisations in migration-related investigation; Spanish rights activist accuses Spain and Morocco of harassment; International Organization for Migration calls for international support for the families of missing migrants.

European Parliament debates the situation in Tigray, urges humanitarian access and investigation of crimes
12 Feb 2021

European Parliament debates the situation in Tigray, urges humanitarian access and investigation of crimes

by | posted in: Abiy Ahmed, Asylum Seekers, Eritrea, Ethiopia, European Commission, European Parliament, European Politics, European Union, Horn of Africa region, Human Rights abuses, Malnutrition, Migration, Refugee Camps, Starvation, UNHCR | 0

On Thursday 11 February, Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) and the Commissioner for International Partnerships, Jutta Urpilainen met in a plenary session, debating on “The humanitarian situation in Ethiopia”. The Commissioner opened the debate underlying that the European Union (EU) is deeply concerned about the ongoing conflict in the Tigray region. The EU is calling for the end of hostilities, full humanitarian access to be exercised independently from the Ethiopian administration, and investigations over alleged human rights violations. MEPs focused largely on the severe human rights abuses, presence of Eritrean soldiers on the ground in Tigray and the EU approach to the conflict.

News Highlights: Renewed offensive from Eritrea feared in Tigray, More refugees face unsafe Mediterranean routes, Frontex fails to provide information
29 Jan 2021

News Highlights: Renewed offensive from Eritrea feared in Tigray, More refugees face unsafe Mediterranean routes, Frontex fails to provide information

by | posted in: Africa, COVID-19, Denmark, Eritrea, Ethiopia, European Union, Horn of Africa region, Human Rights abuses, Human Trafficking, IOM, Italy, Libya, Mediterranean Sea, Migration, Refugee Camps, Sexual abuse, Somalia, Starvation, Sudan, UNHCR, United Nations | 0

In this week’s news highlights: Fear for civilians, refugees and forced conscripts as threats emerge of renewed offensive from Eritrea on Tigray; Allegations of mass sexual violence in Tigray; Tigray’s population in severe humanitarian crisis; Renewed violence in Darfur, Sudan; Ethiopian journalist found dead in Tigray; UNHCR warns of acute risks for refugees and migrants on Mediterranean routes; Departures from Tunisia overtake departures from Libya in 2020; 80 migrants and refugees returned to Libya, 300 returned so far this year; Frontex fails to provide information in internal pushback investigation; More than 370 rescued refugees land in Sicily; EU-Turkey meeting on migration; Two smugglers jailed over the deaths of Vietnamese people locked in a lorry truck; Danish Prime Minister wants zero refugees; Lowest number of refugee resettlement in twenty years.