Training took place on the Italian vessel San Giorgio

The first period of the medical training mission for future Libyan instructors, in which a medical team of the Order of Malta’s Italian Relief Corps participated, ended just a few days ago. The training was carried out as part of the European naval force operation EUNAVFOR MED Sophia, launched with the aim of preventing migrant deaths in the Mediterranean sea, countering the criminal networks controlling human smuggling and trafficking and training naval personnel in Libya, departure point of the boats overloaded with migrants. The Order of Malta’s medical team, embarked on the ship San Giorgio on 29 January last, participated in the training of 89 Libyans in search and rescue at sea, an activity it has been carrying out on board Italian Navy vessels since 2008. The doctors of the Order of Malta’s Italian Relief Corps have assisted some 50 thousand migrants over these years.

Besides the Order of Malta, Frontex, the European Border and Coast Guard Agency, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and the International Organization for Migration are participating in the training which will be carried out in various stages. The aim is to train future instructors of the Libyan Navy and Coast Guard.