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Jérémie Lusseau / SOS MEDITERRANEE

Stories of survivors

SOS MEDITERRANEE has rescued more than 42,700 people since 2016. 

From an eight-year-old who walked alone from Mali to a Lebanese family with three young children, these are the stories of those rescued. Their harrowing and heartbreaking tales shed a light on the dire humanitarian situation in the Mediterranean.  

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Testimony

Sabtou

[TRIGGER WARNING] This text describes acts of torture. Sabtou* is 15 years old, from Somalia. He has been rescued by the Ocean Viking from a large wooden boat in distress during the night between...
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Testimony

Rita

[Content warning] The following text mentions general violence. When the Ocean Viking reached port in Sicily to disembark the survivors in January 2021, police officers, officials from the...
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Testimony

Jenny

Content warning: The following text describes sexual violence. Jenny* was rescued from an overcrowded rubber boat along with her sister [1] in January 2021. On the Ocean Viking, the 25-year-old...
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Testimony

Amir

[Content warning] This text describes different forms of torture. Amir* was rescued by the Ocean Viking on 20 March 2021 from an overcrowded rubber boat in international waters off Libya. The...
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Testimony

Mouna

Mouna* is 53 years old, she was born in Damascus. She was rescued from a small wooden boat in distress by the team of the Ocean Viking on July 31st. She stood out from the time she set foot on...
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Testimony

Samy

Samy*, 16 years old, from Nigeria/Cameroon, shared his story with us after being rescued by the Ocean Viking in January 2021. He is an unaccompanied minor, but despite his young age, his story...