How Malta stole the youth of three young men
Al JazeeraEvery week in 2023, at least 11 children have died or disappeared while attempting to cross the Central Mediterranean Sea, according to a new report by UNICEF. Such young victims of borders include two-year-old Alan Kurdi, whose body washed up along the Turkish shore in 2015, four-year-old Loujin Ahmed Nasif, who died of thirst on a boat that was ignored by the Maltese authorities in 2022, and six-year-old Marie and her mother who were left to die when Tunisian authorities forced them into the desert only a few weeks ago. The lack of legal pathways available to most people “on the move” fuels the smuggling industry and encourages dangerous voyages across the Mediterranean. But even before the El Hiblu landed in Malta, the international press and politicians like Italy’s then interior minister, Matteo Salvini, quickly instrumentalised the situation, portraying the three as pirates and hijackers. On arrival, the three were accused of having committed multiple crimes, including acts of “terrorism”, threatening a crew, and hijacking a ship – preliminary charges that could carry life sentences.
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