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The 'Aquarius' NGO boat has helped save almost 30,000 people in the Mediterranean since 2016 (Photo: Proactiva Open Arms)

EUobserved

EU Commission spins half-truth on 'unsafe' refugee boats

The European Commission on Friday (7 December) said more people were dying at sea because smugglers are using less seaworthy boats.

"What we are seeing here is a change of the modus operandi of the smugglers who are now no longer using the same type of vessels," a Commission spokeswoman told reporters.

The spokeswoman did not say why, noting that close to 700,000 lives have been saved since 2015. In September, she had offered an almost identical explanation.

But the omission...

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Author Bio

Nikolaj joined EUobserver in 2012 and covers home affairs. He is originally from Denmark, but spent much of his life in France and in Belgium. He was awarded the King Baudouin Foundation grant for investigative journalism in 2010.

The 'Aquarius' NGO boat has helped save almost 30,000 people in the Mediterranean since 2016 (Photo: Proactiva Open Arms)

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Author Bio

Nikolaj joined EUobserver in 2012 and covers home affairs. He is originally from Denmark, but spent much of his life in France and in Belgium. He was awarded the King Baudouin Foundation grant for investigative journalism in 2010.

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