The European Union's General Court has partially annulled a decision by the EU border agency, Frontex, to refuse a German search-and-rescue organization access to documents on an air surveillance mission.
Frontex had refused a freedom of information request from Sea-Watch for documents related to an air operation the border agency conducted in the Mediterranean Sea on July 30, 2021. It justified the refusal on public security grounds.
The EU General Court on Wednesday partially annulled that refusal: while it rejected most of Sea-Watch's arguments, it found that Frontex had failed to mention in its refusal the existence of photographs covered by Sea-Watch's request.
That meant the border agency had not justified its refusal to release the photographs, as the law requires.
Otherwise, however, the court ruled it is legitimate for Frontex to refuse access to "operational information which could jeopardize attainment of the objectives of operations if it were made public."
The court ordered Sea-Watch to pay half of Frontex's costs.
According to an article published on Sea-Watch's website on Monday, the July 2021 incident saw Libyan authorities intercept a migrant ship. Campaign groups say Frontex was involved.
"Within the Maltese search and rescue zone, a boat in distress with about 20 people on board was intercepted by the so-called Libyan coast guard and pulled back to Libya," Sea-Watch wrote.
"As the non-governmental organizations Human Rights Watch and Border Forensics pointed out, it must be assumed that Frontex facilitated this illegal interception."
A 2022 article on the website of Human Rights Watch alleges that the Libyan Coast Guard's actions were made possible by Frontex aerial surveillance.