TRIPOLI, Aug 24 (NNN-Xinhua) — The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said that an illegal migrant died while 14 others remain missing off the Libyan coast.
“Between last night and today, 279 individuals were returned to the Tripoli Naval Base (95) and Azzawiya Oil Refinery Port (184) following three disembarkations,” UNHCR tweeted.
“One body was recovered and 14 were reported missing during the operation in Azzawiya (45 km east of Tripoli),” UNHCR said.
Libya has been suffering insecurity and chaos since the fall of the late leader Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, making the North African country a preferred point of departure for illegal migrants who want to cross the Mediterranean Sea to European shores.
Rescued migrants end up inside overcrowded reception centers across Libya, despite repeated international calls to close those centers.
So far in 2021, more than 22,000 illegal migrants, including women and children, have been rescued, while hundreds of others died and went missing off the Libyan coast on the Central Mediterranean route, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM). — NNN-AGENCIES
