Libya to Release Detained Tunisian Migrants

Libya’s Head of the Department for Combating Illegal Migration, Colonel Abdel-Hafiz Mabrouk announced Tuesday that all Tunisian migrants “will be released within the next two days or during the weekend…. after completing the necessary administrative, legal, and health procedures.”

Tunisian Embassy, Ambassador Al-Asad Al-Ajili, accompanied by the Consul General, visited the Illegal Migration Centre in the Ghot Al-Shaal area of Tripoli, and met with Colonel Mabrouk.

In a press release, Tunisian diplomats stated they were briefed on the conditions of the detained Tunisian nationals, and assured of their imminent release.

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) on Monday announced that 1,111 migrants were rescued in the central Mediterranean, and returned to Libya in the last week of July. Some of the rescued persons in June and July were Tunisian Migrants.

IOM added that compared to a significantly lower number of 11,891 of those intercepted at sea throughout last year, a total of 19,393 refugees have been returned to Libya so far within the first seven months of 2021.

Over 350 migrants have lost their lives this year while trying to cross to Europe, while 570 got missing. In 2020, some 381 people died, and 597 more were reported missing according to the IOM.

The central Mediterranean between Libya and Italy has become one of the deadliest routes for migrants. Last week, at least 57 migrants died, while over a dozen migrants were rescued after a boat capsized off the coast of Libya.