Militia detains 300 migrants in the desert in Libya’s effort to contain sea crossings
3 weeks, 6 days ago

Militia detains 300 migrants in the desert in Libya’s effort to contain sea crossings

Associated Press  

TRIPOLI, Libya — Libyan military officials said Monday they apprehended hundreds of migrants traversing the country’s vast desert hoping to ultimately cross the Mediterranean Sea in pursuit of a better life in Europe. The 444 Brigade, a powerful militia group that operates under the auspices of the Libyan army, said in a statement that its patrolling commanders detained more than 300 migrants and referred them to authorities. The overcrowded boats used by migrants and smugglers are known to routinely capsize and a key priority for European leaders has been to encourage North African countries to prevent migrants from reaching the sea. United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk in July said migrants in the country had been subjected to torture, forced labor and starvation while being detained.

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History of this topic

Libya’s coast guard intercepts 64 Europe-bound migrants, days after a deadly shipwreck
3 months, 2 weeks ago

Libya’s coast guard intercepts 64 Europe-bound migrants, days after a deadly shipwreck

Associated Press  

CAIRO — Libya’s coast guard intercepted dozens of Europe-bound migrants on a boat and returned them to shore, authorities said Saturday, a few days after a shipwreck off the North African country left nearly two dozen dead or missing. The boat was carrying 64 migrants and was intercepted Friday off the northwestern town of Sirte, according to the town’s coast …

Mass grave with bodies of at least 65 migrants found in the deserts of western Libya
9 months ago

Mass grave with bodies of at least 65 migrants found in the deserts of western Libya

Associated Press  

CAIRO — The U.N.’s migration agency expressed alarm Friday over the discovery of a mass grave containing the bodies of at least 65 migrants in the deserts of western Libya. On its Facebook page, it said 65 bodies of unidentified migrants had been unearthed from the grave, samples were taken for DNA testing and the bodies were reburied in a …

Relief as Italian court says rescued refugees cannot be sent back to Libya
9 months, 3 weeks ago

Relief as Italian court says rescued refugees cannot be sent back to Libya

Al Jazeera  

Italy’s highest court has ruled that the country’s vessels cannot return rescued refugees to the North African country, widening the gap between the courts and parliament. Tunis, Tunisia – News that an Italian court had blocked the country’s vessels from returning refugees and migrants to Libya was welcomed by the tens of refugees and migrants camped in a crowded passage …

Over 60 People Have Drowned In Capsizing Of Migrant Vessel Off Libya, U.N. Says
1 year ago

Over 60 People Have Drowned In Capsizing Of Migrant Vessel Off Libya, U.N. Says

Huff Post  

This is a locator map for Libya with its capital, Tripoli. AP Photo CAIRO — A boat carrying dozens of migrants trying to reach Europe capsized off the coast of Libya, leaving more than 60 people dead, including women and children, the U.N. migration agency said. The U.N.’s International Organization for Migration said in a statement late Saturday that the …

More than 60 people drown after a migrant vessel capsizes off Libya, U.N. says
1 year ago

More than 60 people drown after a migrant vessel capsizes off Libya, U.N. says

LA Times  

A boat carrying dozens of migrants trying to reach Europe capsized off the coast of Libya, leaving more than 60 people dead, including women and children, the U.N. migration agency said. The United Nations’ International Organization for Migration said in a statement late Saturday that the boat was carrying 86 migrants when strong waves swamped it off the town of …

Tunisia and Libya take 276 migrants stranded in desert border region, bring them to shelters
1 year, 4 months ago

Tunisia and Libya take 276 migrants stranded in desert border region, bring them to shelters

Associated Press  

TUNIS, Tunisia — Tunisia and Libya took back 276 sub-Saharan migrants stranded in a desert region along the border between the two countries and brought them to shelters on Thursday. Libya said Wednesday that 27 migrants from sub-Saharan Africa were found dead by Libyan authorities in the western desert near the Tunisian border. On the Libyan side, Ahmed Hamza, chairman …

27 migrants found dead in Libyan desert at border after possible expulsion from Tunisia
1 year, 4 months ago

27 migrants found dead in Libyan desert at border after possible expulsion from Tunisia

India TV News  

At least 27 migrants from sub-Saharan Africa have been found dead on the country's western desert near the border after reportedly being expelled from the latter nation, according to Libyan authorities. The Tunisian Interior Minister also confirmed that some migrants trying to enter the country have been pushed back to the desert border areas with Libya and Algeria. Tunisia has …

At least 27 people found dead in desert after expulsion from Tunisia: Libya
1 year, 4 months ago

At least 27 people found dead in desert after expulsion from Tunisia: Libya

Al Jazeera  

Libyan border guards say about 150 refugees and migrants cross into Libya every day after being expelled from Tunisia. Libyan border guards found the bodies “in the desert a vast area to the south of the northern crossing”, Al Jazeera’s Malik Traina, reporting from the Libyan city of Misrata, said on Wednesday. Libyan border guards and rights groups accuse Tunisia …

Tunisian minister concedes ‘small groups’ of migrants were pushed back into desert no man’s land
1 year, 4 months ago

Tunisian minister concedes ‘small groups’ of migrants were pushed back into desert no man’s land

Associated Press  

TUNIS, Tunisia — Tunisia’s interior minister conceded that small groups of sub-Saharan migrants trying to enter the country are pushed back into the desert border areas with Libya and Algeria, but labeled as “false allegations” claims by the U.N., humanitarian groups and migrants themselves of mistreatment. In an interview with The Associated Press Wednesday, Kamel Fekih said that while there …

A family’s deadly tale shows chaos at the Tunisian border where Black migrants face discrimination
1 year, 4 months ago

A family’s deadly tale shows chaos at the Tunisian border where Black migrants face discrimination

Associated Press  

When Mbengue Nyimbilo Crepin regained consciousness after collapsing in the desert, the sun had already set. Nyimbilo believes Matyla and Marie are among more than a dozen Black migrants Libyan border guards say they’ve found dead in the desert border area of the North African nations since Tunisian authorities began conducting mass expulsions in early July. He blasted the influx …

Libya jails 38 over deaths in Mediterranean Sea smuggling case
1 year, 5 months ago

Libya jails 38 over deaths in Mediterranean Sea smuggling case

Al Jazeera  

Five get life in jail over a trafficking case involving 11 people who died trying to cross the Mediterranean to Europe. A court in eastern Libya has sentenced five people to life in prison after they were convicted of human trafficking over the deaths of 11 migrants and refugees who were on a rickety boat trying to cross the Mediterranean …

A Libyan court jails 38 human traffickers over the deaths of 11 Europe-bound migrants at sea
1 year, 5 months ago

A Libyan court jails 38 human traffickers over the deaths of 11 Europe-bound migrants at sea

Associated Press  

CAIRO — A court in eastern Libya sentenced five people to life in prison after they were convicted of human trafficking over the deaths of 11 migrants who were on a rickety boat trying to cross the Mediterranean to Europe, the office of Libya’s chief prosecutor said Monday. The court in the city of Bayda also sentenced nine other defendants …

Tunisia rejects accusations of mistreatment of Black refugees
1 year, 5 months ago

Tunisia rejects accusations of mistreatment of Black refugees

Al Jazeera  

Tunisian President Kais Saied said refugees were receiving humane treatment stemming from what he called ‘our values’. President Kais Saied said on Sunday the refugees were receiving humane treatment stemming from what he called “our values”. “We informed the Tunisian authorities these people are supposed to be removed from the border points because they have infiltrated illegally,” said Major-General Abd …

A Libyan court sentences 3 people to prison terms over human trafficking
1 year, 5 months ago

A Libyan court sentences 3 people to prison terms over human trafficking

Associated Press  

CAIRO — A court in the Libyan capital sentenced three people to harsh prison terms on charges of human trafficking, in a first such ruling in a North African nation where migrants are routinely mistreated. The Criminal Court of Tripoli convicted the three of human trafficking, detaining, and torturing migrants, and extorting their families to pay ransom to release their …

Eastern Libyan authorities round up thousands in crackdown on migrants
1 year, 6 months ago

Eastern Libyan authorities round up thousands in crackdown on migrants

Associated Press  

CAIRO — Libyan authorities rounded up thousands of mostly Egyptian migrants and amassed them at the border, activists said Saturday, as Libya continued its crackdown on migrants. The migrants were detained in raids over the past two days on trafficking warehouses in the border town of Musaid and other areas in eastern Libya, said Tarik Lamloum, an activist with the …

Rescue groups say Malta coordinated the return of 500 migrants to Libya instead of saving them
1 year, 6 months ago

Rescue groups say Malta coordinated the return of 500 migrants to Libya instead of saving them

Associated Press  

BARCELONA, Spain — A group of non-governmental organizations dedicated to rescuing migrants in the central Mediterranean is accusing the European island nation of Malta of coordinating the return of around 500 people to Libya where they were subsequently imprisoned, in violation of international maritime law. Migrants aboard the vessel shared their GPS location with Alarm Phone showing they were in …

UN says at least 55 migrants drowned in shipwreck off Libya
1 year, 7 months ago

UN says at least 55 migrants drowned in shipwreck off Libya

Associated Press  

CAIRO — A rubber boat carrying dozens of Europe-bound migrants sank off the coast of Libya and at least 55 people drowned, including women and children, the U.N. migration agency said Wednesday. The IOM said at least 537 people have drowned or gone missing in migrant disasters in the Mediterranean off Libya so far this year, while over 4,300 have …

UN-backed probe cites crimes against humanity in Libya
1 year, 8 months ago

UN-backed probe cites crimes against humanity in Libya

Associated Press  

GENEVA — U.N.-backed human rights experts said Monday there is evidence that crimes against humanity have been committed against Libyans and migrants in chaos-stricken Libya, including women being forced into sexual slavery. The investigators found “reasonable grounds to believe that crimes against humanity were committed against Libyans and migrants throughout Libya,” said Mohamed Auajjar, the head of the fact-finding mission. …

Group: 22 Syrian migrants on hunger strike in Libyan prison
1 year, 9 months ago

Group: 22 Syrian migrants on hunger strike in Libyan prison

Associated Press  

CAIRO — At least 22 Syrian migrants detained for more than five months in Libya began a hunger strike Monday to demand their release, a Libyan rights group said. The group of migrants included three minors and have been held in a prison in the western town of Zawiya in appalling conditions, the group Belaady said. The migrants arrived in …

More than 160 migrants drown in shipwrecks off Libya, UN says
3 years ago

More than 160 migrants drown in shipwrecks off Libya, UN says

Al Jazeera  

IOM spokesperson Safa Msehli says at least 102 migrants died when a boat capsized on Friday, before another 62 died in another incident on Saturday. More than 160 migrants drowned in two separate shipwrecks off Libya during past week, a United Nations migration official has said. Safa Msehli, a spokeswoman for the International Organization for Migration, said on Tuesday that …

Thousands of refugees and migrants plead for Libya evacuation
3 years, 2 months ago

Thousands of refugees and migrants plead for Libya evacuation

Al Jazeera  

Appeals at Tripoli sit-in come as more than 5,000 people rounded up this month and put in indefinite detention in already overcrowded centres. “Still now, they did not get medical care and shelter.” More than 5,000 people have been rounded up by security forces since October 1 and put into indefinite detention. If they go into the street you can …

Ransomed and beaten: Migrants face abuse in Libyan detention
3 years, 2 months ago

Ransomed and beaten: Migrants face abuse in Libyan detention

Associated Press  

ONBOARD THE GEO BARENTS OFF LIBYA — Osman Touré was crying from the pain of repeated beatings and torture as he dialed his brother’s cellphone number. “They will kill me if you don’t pay 2,500 dinars in 24 hours.” Within days, Touré’s family transferred the roughly $550 demanded to secure his freedom from a government detention center in Libya. The …

UN slams violence against migrants in Libya, calls for inquiry
3 years, 2 months ago

UN slams violence against migrants in Libya, calls for inquiry

Al Jazeera  

UN human rights office demands an investigation into the fatal shooting of migrants fleeing a crackdown in Libya. Libyan security forces used “unnecessary and disproportionate” force to detain African migrants, shooting dead some of those trying to escape, the UN human rights office has said as it demanded an inquiry into the violence. Migrants and asylum seekers, some of whose …

Libyan detention centre guards kill six migrants amid crackdown
3 years, 2 months ago

Libyan detention centre guards kill six migrants amid crackdown

Al Jazeera  

The IOM says overcrowding at a detention centre in Tripoli had led to chaos. Guards at a Libyan detention centre have shot dead six migrants, the United Nations agency for migration said, amid an ongoing violent crackdown against refugees and asylum seekers. The International Organization for Migration on Friday said overcrowding at the Ghot Shaal detention centre in Tripoli had …

Libya’s migrant detentions tops 5,000 as crackdown continues
3 years, 2 months ago

Libya’s migrant detentions tops 5,000 as crackdown continues

Al Jazeera  

Amnesty International has called on Libyan authorities to release migrants and refugees including more than 200 children. The number of migrants and refugees detained in a major crackdown in western Libya has exceeded 5,000 people, including hundreds of women and children, according to a United Nations tally. According to the organisation, the crackdown was conducted by the “Public Security” militia, …

About 500 Europe-bound Migrants Intercepted off Libya, Say UN
3 years, 2 months ago

About 500 Europe-bound Migrants Intercepted off Libya, Say UN

News 18  

Libyas coast guard Sunday intercepted a wooden boat carrying around 500 Europe-bound migrants off the countrys shore, the U.N. refugee agency said. The migrants from Sunday’s interception were disembarked at an oil refinery point in the western town of Zawiya, a major launching point for migrants, according to the U.N. refugee agency UNHCR. On Saturday, the Libyan coast guard intercepted …

Libya detains 4,000 people in major anti-migrant crackdown
3 years, 2 months ago

Libya detains 4,000 people in major anti-migrant crackdown

Al Jazeera  

Hundreds of women and children among those detained during raids in Gargaresh town. “Unarmed migrants were harassed in their homes, beaten and shot,” the UN humanitarian coordinator for Libya Georgette Gagnon said. “We are hearing that more than 500 migrants including women and children have been rounded up, arbitrarily detained and are at risk of abuse and ill-treatment,” said Dax …

North African migrants, adrift, tell of last-minute rescue
3 years, 2 months ago

North African migrants, adrift, tell of last-minute rescue

Associated Press  

ABOARD GEO BARENTS — The small fiberglass boat had begun to take on water not long after the engine stopped working. The group had embarked a day earlier from Libya’s coastal town of Zawiya, a major launching point for migrants attempting the dangerous voyage. According to recent numbers published by Italy’s Interior Ministry, three of the top 10 countries of …

UN concerned about detained migrants vanishing in Libya
3 years, 3 months ago

UN concerned about detained migrants vanishing in Libya

Associated Press  

ON BOARD THE GEO BARENTS IN THE MEDITERRANEAN SEA — A U.N. migration agency official expressed concerns Friday over the disappearance of thousands of Europe-bound migrants who were intercepted and returned to Libya as more and more desperate people risk their lives trying to cross the Mediterranean Sea to Europe. According to Safa Msehli, a spokeswoman for the International Organization …

Aid group says detained migrant killed, 2 injured in Libya
3 years, 8 months ago

Aid group says detained migrant killed, 2 injured in Libya

Associated Press  

CAIRO — A shooting in a detention center for migrants in Libya’s capital left one migrant dead and two others injured, an international charity said Saturday. “This shooting demonstrates the grave risks that people face while locked up in these detention centers for an indefinite period of time,” said Ellen van der Velden, MSF’s operational manager for Libya. The international …

More than 150 migrants freed in Libya in raid on human traffickers
3 years, 10 months ago

More than 150 migrants freed in Libya in raid on human traffickers

LA Times  

Libyan authorities raided a secret prison in a southeastern city used by human traffickers and freed at last 156 African migrants, as the U.N. migration agency said Monday more than 1,300 Europe-bound migrants were returned over the past week to the conflict-stricken country. The International Organization for Migration said at least 1,315 migrants were intercepted at the Mediterranean Sea since …

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