Reuters reconstructed the journey of a single overcrowded rubber boat carrying 57 people from Libya toward Italy which spent six harrowing hours at sea. Despite repeated distress calls, no coast guard or navy vessel responded. Only an NGO rescue ship, the Geo Barents, eventually reached them.

This dinghy was one of over 1,300 boats that ran into trouble in 2024. Nearly 3,812 people died or went missing trying to reach Europe by sea that year — almost half of them on the central Mediterranean route. This is not an isolated incident. Humanitarian groups say European policies have created a vacuum in search and rescue coverage, leaving migrants to die or be returned to forced labor and abuse in Libya.

The real cost of deterrence

The EU’s crackdown on NGO search and rescue operations has compounded the crisis.

While Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and EU leaders claim success in reducing crossings, rights groups argue that focusing on deterrence is endangering lives. During the first half of 2025, the IOM recorded 588 deaths or disappearances in the central Mediterranean — a 38% drop from the same period in 2024, but still alarmingly high.

Italy’s policy of directing NGO vessels to distant ports after rescues has significantly reduced their ability to patrol and assist more boats. This burden has made it increasingly difficult for organisations like Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) to operate. In December, MSF suspended its rescue operations, citing unsustainable conditions.

Meanwhile, InfoMigrants reports continued criminalisation of rescue work, including Italy’s 2023 law requiring rescue vessels to head to distant ports after a single rescue. Failure to comply can lead to hefty fines and weeks-long ship detentions. The InfoMigrants team witnessed firsthand a rescue ship being blocked by Italian authorities for returning to Lampedusa to rescue migrants instead of heading to the assigned port.

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