Brussels, 14 April 2026 — Open Arms took part in the European Parliament hearing “Mediterranean: Restarting from the people”, promoted by MEP Nicola Zingaretti, within the framework of the future Pact for the Mediterranean.
In this space, the organisation brought its direct experience at sea after more than ten years of rescues in the central Mediterranean, in a context in which deaths continue to rise despite a decrease in departures.
Open Arms called for people to be placed back at the centre of European policies, with concrete measures such as a European search and rescue mission, safe and legal pathways, and an end to practices that violate international law.
In the same framework, and on the occasion of its tenth anniversary, the organisation presented the book Open Arms. A Mission Against the Current, which brings together ten years of rescues, testimonies and first-person stories. The volume has also been added to the European Parliament Library, as part of an exercise in memory and a direct appeal to the European institutions.
Because saving lives should not be a political choice, but an obligation.
