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The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is seriously concerned by the Italian Government's decision to approve by law the imposition of fines on ships rescuing migrants in the Mediterranean.
Parliament-approved amendments provide for fines of up to EUR 1 million for private salvage vessels that violate the territorial water entry order. At the same time, the ship is subject to immediate confiscation.
The Commission reiterates that the introduction of financial or other fines for ships can undermine the activity of private craft in sea rescue activities. Most European countries have refused to carry out rescue operations in the Mediterranean. At present, only non-governmental organizations are helping to save the lives of refugees and migrants who are making dangerous attempts to cross the sea and reach Europe.
The High Commissioner for Refugees believes that the manifestation of humanity by non-governmental organizations should not be regarded as a crime or stigmatized.
Non-governmental organizations and private vessels should not be forced to return rescued people to Libya or transfer them to the Libyan Coast Guard, which would endanger the lives of migrants and refugees.
The Bulgarian Council of Ministers announced that authorities have begun imposing fines on traders found to be raising prices without justification
Italy could lose as much as one-fifth of its beaches by the middle of the century due to rising sea levels
Humanity has already missed the mark on limiting global warming to 1.5C, the UN Secretary-General António Guterres has warned, stressing the urgent need for decisive action
The Consumer Protection Commission (CPCo) has announced penalties against 70 traders who failed to meet their obligations under the Euro Law
The Bulgarian men’s national volleyball team fell short in the final of the World Championship in the Philippines, losing 1:3 (21:25, 17:25, 25:17, 10:25) to reigning champion Italy
Only 13 people survived and dozens remain missing after a vessel carrying 74 refugees, mostly from Sudan, capsized off the coast of Tobruk in eastern Libya on September 13, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
Germany’s defense minister Boris Pistorius warned that Russia could regain enough military strength to target a NATO member state before 2029
Romania has ordered the evacuation of the border village of Plauru after a Russian drone strike on a Ukrainian port sparked a fire on a gas-carrying vessel nearby
Poland’s prime minister Donald Tusk has described the recent explosion on a key railway route between Warsaw and Lublin as “an unprecedented act of sabotage aimed at the security of the Polish state and its citizens.”
The European Commission has temporarily halted the preliminary assessment of Bulgaria’s request for the third payment under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has reaffirmed that the most efficient way to fund Ukraine is by using the profits from frozen Russian assets to back a new loan
France is set to mark the 10th anniversary of the November 13, 2015 terror attacks in Paris, in which over 130 people were killed and more than 400 were injured
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