On Wednesday 3 July, the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Federica Mogherini, and the Commissioners for Neighbourhood Policy, Johannes Hahn, and Migration, Dimitris Avramopoulos, condemned the "shocking and tragic" attack on a detention centre in Libya. At least 40 migrants were killed and 70 wounded in a night air raid attributed to General Haftar's forces.
In a joint statement, EU representatives joined the UN and International Organization for Migration (IOM) in calling for an immediate investigation to find the perpetrators of this "horrific attack". "Those responsible should be held to account", they argued.
The High Representative and the Commissioners stressed that this attack was a reminder of the human cost of the conflict in Libya and "the dire and vulnerable situation of migrants caught up in the spiral of violence in the country". "Violence against civilians, including refugees and migrants, is utterly unacceptable and we deplore it in the strongest terms", they insisted.
Ms Mogherini, along with Mr Hahn and Mr Avramopoulos called for the transfer of migrants to safe places as soon as possible so that they can receive assistance and be evacuated. They also called on the parties to the conflict to respect international humanitarian law and to allow unconditional access for humanitarian actors.
Moreover, "Our position on Libya's system of detaining migrants is clear: this system has to end and migration needs to be managed in full compliance with international standards, including when it comes to human rights", they also recalled. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)