The Baobab

The Baobab migration centre was a non-governmental refugee camp located in via Cupa, near the Tiburtina station in Rome, Italy. It was entirely supported by public donations and run by volunteers. In 2015 the Baobab was at the forefront of solidarity efforts in the refugee emergency, receiving and helping an estimated 35.000 asylum seekers, mainly from North African countries, who were making their way towards Northern Europe, often without any permit of stay or ID card.

On November 24th 2015, as part of a nationwide crackdown on illegal immigrants in the wake of the November 13th jihadist attacks in Paris, police raided the centre at dawn and 23 migrants were taken to the central immigration office.

After a negotiation between the volunteers and the local administration and despite numerous petitions and appeals, police closed the Baobab on the 6th of December.

This photo-story is part of an ongoing project developed by the photographers Francesca Pompei and Gianluca De Simone.