The European Union’s naval Operation EUNAVFOR MED IRINI, responsible for enforcing the UN arms embargo in Libya, has released its monthly report for April, revealing that Turkey has refused to allow the boarding and inspection of suspicious ships on ten occasions, the latest being on March 29, 2023.
The operation seized three shipments in violation of the UN arms embargo and redirected the ships to a port in an EU member state. IRINI also investigated 9,361 commercial ships through radio requests and visited 470 ships with the approval of their leaders. Additionally, the operation investigated 1,153 suspicious flights, 25 airports, and 16 ports, providing 41 special reports to the UN expert team on Libya, most of which indicated violations or potential violations of the embargo on arms and oil smuggling in the west and east of the country.
The EU launched the military operation IRINI in March 2020, primarily focusing on enforcing the UN arms embargo on Libya. The operation is part of the EU’s integrated approach to Libya, which includes “political, military, economic, and humanitarian efforts to achieve stability and security in the country.”