Information Note on the Court’s case-law 193
February 2016
Khlaifia and Others v. Italy (referral) - 16483/12
Judgment 1.9.2015 [Section II]
Article 4 of Protocol No. 4
Prohibition of collective expulsion of aliens
Alleged collective expulsion of migrants to Tunisia: case referred to the Grand Chamber
Article 13
Effective remedy
Lack of suspensive effect of remedy for collective expulsions: case referred to the Grand Chamber
In September 2011 the applicants left Tunisia with other individuals on makeshift vessels heading for the Italian coast. After several hours at sea they were intercepted by the Italian Coastguard, which escorted them to a port on the island of Lampedusa. The applicants were placed in a reception centre. After the centre was gutted in a revolt, they were transferred to ships moored off Palermo. The Tunisian Consul recorded their identifies. Refusal-of-entry orders were issued against the applicants, although they deny having been notified of them. They were subsequently flown to Tunis, where they were released.
In a judgment of 1 September 2015 (see Information Note 188), a Chamber of the Court found, among other things, that there had been a violation of Article 4 of Protocol No. 4 to the Convention on account of a lack of sufficient guarantees demonstrating that the personal circumstances of each of the migrants concerned had been genuinely and individually taken into account, together with a violation of Article 13 of the Convention concerning the lack of suspensive effect of the appeals by which they could have challenged the collective nature of their expulsions.
On 1 February 2016 the case was referred to the Grand Chamber at the request of the Government.
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This summary by the Registry does not bind the Court.
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