During patrol, the fast boat ‘Speedy’ was followed by a fast boat of the Libyan coastguard from al-Zawijah. The coastguard forced the vessel to go to the port of al-Zawijah . Once there, the two crew members were separated from each other and were held captive and interrogated for three days.
With the help of diplomatic support, the crew was transferred to the ‘Werra’, a tender of the German navy, which brought them back to the ‘Sea-Eye’. ‘Speedy’ remains confiscated and, according to eyewitnesses, is being used by the Libyan coastguard.
SAR case number: N.A
SAR organisation: Sea Eye
SAR asset: Sea Eye
Incident types: Fast approach; Intimidation (Other)
Date of SAR (UTC): 09/09/2016
Vessels
Number of migrant boats: 0
Type of migrant boat(s): N.A
Number of people on board per boat: N.A
Other vessels in the vicinity (e.g. unidentified / cargo / aircrafts): Libyan Coast Guard
Actors involved (by asset / institution type): Libyan Coast Guard/Navy
Location
Region of Mediterranean: Eastern Mediterranean
Position(s) of rescue(s) at the time of SAR operation(s):
Location description: High seas
Approximate distance from coast line: 12 Nautical Miles
Fatalities
Total number of confirmed deaths: 0
Estimated number of dead / missing persons: 0