Amnesty International has condemned Tunisia for what it describes as “horrific” human rights violations against refugees and migrants, particularly those from sub-Saharan Africa.
In a report based on three years of research and interviews with 120 migrants from nearly 20 countries released on Thursday, November 6, the rights group detailed accounts of rape, torture, arbitrary detention, racial profiling, and forcible expulsions to unsafe territories.
Amnesty’s regional director, Heba Morayef, said the Tunisian government had “stoked xenophobia” and inflicted severe harm on refugee protections, urging Tunisian authorities to halt mass expulsions and end racist incitement. The organization also criticized the European Union for “risking complicity” in these abuses through its migration partnership with Tunisia. The EU has been funding and equipping North African states to prevent irregular migration across the Mediterranean, while designating Tunisia as a “safe country.” Amnesty argued that the EU’s silence over the reported violations and continued cooperation undermines its own human rights commitments. The group called for an immediate suspension of EU support until robust human rights safeguards are implemented.
The report has intensified scrutiny on the EU’s migration strategy, which faces mounting criticism for outsourcing border control to states accused of systemic abuses. Rights organisations contend that years of EU engagement with countries like Libya and Tunisia have only enabled impunity and worsened the plight of migrants. Following reports of violence by Libyan coastguards, several humanitarian groups have severed ties with state agencies, citing “legitimised abuses.” The Central Mediterranean remains the world’s deadliest migration route, with over 1,000 deaths and disappearances recorded so far in 2025, according to the International Organization for Migration.