Sicily's Prisoner Fishermen
Eighteen fishermen from Sicily are in jail in Benghazi accused of fishing in Libya's waters.
18 fishermen from Sicily are in jail in Benghazi, accused of fishing in Libya’s waters. And in this part of the Mediterranean rich in the highly-prized and lucrative red prawn, these kinds of arrests are frequent. Usually the Libyans release the men after negotiations. This time it’s different. Gen Khalifa Haftar – the warlord with authority over the east of Libya – is demanding a prisoner swap: the freeing of 4 Libyans in jail in Sicily convicted of human trafficking and implicated in the deaths of 49 migrants, in return for the fishermen. For Crossing Continents, Linda Pressly explores a little-known conflict in the Mediterranean - the so-called War of the Red Prawn, and its fall-out.
Last on
Broadcasts
- Thu 26 Nov 2020 11:00Â鶹Éç Radio 4
- Mon 30 Nov 2020 20:30Â鶹Éç Radio 4
Podcast
-
Crossing Continents
Stories from around the world and the people at the heart of them.