EU Commission: Libya unfit for migrant disembarkation

"The Commission has consistently maintained that it does not believe these conditions are being currently met in Libya," she said, citing an international convention on maritime search and rescue.

The EU has trained over 230 Libyan coast guards to pluck people at sea and return them to Libya - a programme that has attracted criticism from charities given the country's open slave markets and notorious detention centres.

But Bertaud's comments were linked to an Italian towboat that reportedly unloaded rescued people in Libya.

"Without knowing the specific details about this operation and under which authority the ship is operating, we cannot comment on this specific case. We are in touch with the Italians to find out more," she said, when pressed.

The allegation was made on Monday (30 July) by Oscar Camps, the founder of Proactiva Open Arms, a Spanish sea search and rescue NGO.

In a tweet, he said that the Asso 28 Italian oil rig support vessel had been instructed by the Italian coastguard to disembark 108 people in Libya.

"The Asso 28, with an Italian flag, rescued 108 people in international waters and is now deporting them to Libya, a country where human rights are not respected. No chance [for them] to get asylum or shelter," he said.

But the Italian coastguard on Tuesday said the Libyan Coast Guard had both coordinated and "managed the whole operation".

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees, in a tweet, said disembarking migrants in Libya from the Italian-flagged ship "could represent a violation of international law."

The confusion points to a wider disarray among the EU in its efforts to better manage migration and refugees.

The commission is now trying to get coastal states around the Mediterranean to coordinate rescues in an effort to prevent others from making the dangerous journey.

On Monday in Geneva, the United Nations refugee agency and the International Organization for Migration convened a meeting to discuss proposals on search and rescue operations and disembarkation.

The meeting was held behind closed doors.

But according to the commission, all coastal states around the Mediterranean were represented.

"In general there was consensus among participants on the need for strengthened cooperation and coordination and a willingness to continue discussions," it said.