Refugee Crisis: Armed Men Shoot at International Aid Workers in Attack on Rescue Ship Patrolling Mediterranean
26th August 2016
Gunmen have attacked a charity-funded boat rescuing refugees in the Mediterranean Sea, shooting at international aid workers before boarding the vessel.
The Bourbon Argos, which is operated by Doctors Without Borders (MSF), was patrolling around 24 nautical miles north of the Libyan coast when a speedboat approached.
Those on board failed to identify themselves or answer radio contact, then opened fire from around 500 metres away as rescue workers sought refuge in a designated safe area.
The armed men then boarded the Bourbon Argos and searched the vessel, which had no refugees on board at the time, for almost an hour.