The United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) condemned the “heinous murder of at least 15 migrants and asylum seekers” in the Libyan city of Sabratha (west), calling for “bringing the perpetrators to justice”.
Fifteen bodies of migrants, some of them charred, were unearthed on Friday on the coast of Sabratha (70 km from Tripoli), an important departure point for thousands of people seeking to reach the Italian coast.
“Eleven charred bodies were found inside a moored boat and four other bodies with injuries were found outside,” MANUL said in a statement.
“Although the exact circumstances have yet to be determined, the killings are believed to have been the result of armed clashes between rival traffickers,” said the UN, which urged Libyan authorities to “ensure a prompt, independent and transparent investigation to bring all perpetrators to justice.
This tragedy “is a stark reminder of the lack of protection faced by migrants and asylum seekers in Libya, as well as the widespread human rights violations perpetrated by powerful trafficking and criminal networks,” the UN mission said.
Local media reports that the migrants, mostly from sub-Saharan Africa, were killed Thursday by gunfire following a dispute between smugglers.
One of the groups of smugglers involved in the dispute then set fire to the boat on Friday, the same sources confirmed.
The chaos that followed the murder of Muammar Gaddafi has made Libya a preferred route for thousands of migrants from sub-Saharan Africa trying to reach Europe through Italy.
Since the beginning of the 2022, 14,157 migrants have been intercepted and returned to Libya, according to a report by the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) released on Monday.