The EU border guard agency has denied allegations made by migrant-rescue organization Sea-Watch that it abandoned an overcrowded migrant boat in distress, leading to the deaths of two children.
EU Border and Coast Guard Agency Frontex has denied allegations that it abandoned an overcrowded migrant boat in distress. A boat carrying more than 90 migrants capsized off Tunisia last Monday (July 28), leaving two children dead. Afterwards, sea rescue organization Sea-Watch accused European and Italian authorities, including Frontex, of failing to act in time to rescue people.
Frontex said it provided assistance through real-time air coordination, supporting the crew of a merchant ship that rescued the boat's passengers. Frontex, the EU Border and Coast Guard Agency, said its aircraft "were present before, during, and after the rescue, helping save human lives."
Frontex reacts to Sea-Watch accusations
Frontex denied Sea Watch's allegations regarding the rescue operation, stressing that its "aerial support helped make the difference in a desperate situation".
The EU agency said a total of three Frontex aircraft were deployed to monitor and coordinate rescue efforts, claiming it constantly kept operations under control from the air.
When the boat capsized during a rescue attempt carried out by merchant ship Port Fukoka, another Frontex aircraft, Eagle 2, was nearby, it said.
One of the agency's crews released a life raft from the air to help survivors in the water while coordinating the merchant ship's efforts and other rescue resources, it said.
In posts on social media, Sea-Watch had said that after it informed Italian and European authorities of the boat in distress, Frontex "arrived 6 hours later, saw the boat — and left," adding that "[t]he boat remained alone at sea for another day." They also said that Frontex should have deployed its rescue vessel instead of aircraft to save people.
What happened to the rescued migrants?
Most migrants on the boat were rescued by the crew of a merchant ship. According to Sea-Watch, they had disembarked from the ship in Italy by Saturday (August 1).
The organization also said that a pregnant woman and her husband had been evacuated from the ship earlier, after her water broke.