Libyan navy says some 100 migrants believed missing at sea

A frame grab from an Italian Coast Guard video on January 6 in the Mediterranean Sea off Libya shows migrants being rescued from dinghies as they try to cross to Italy. (Italian Coast Guard via AP)
Updated 10 January 2018
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Libyan navy says some 100 migrants believed missing at sea

TRIPOLI: Libya’s navy says some 100 migrants are believed missing at sea and that at least 279 others have been rescued off the Libyan coast.
Wednesday’s statement says the migrants, mostly Africans, had embarked on the perilous trip across the Mediterranean in several vessels. Those missing were all from one single rubber boat that got ruptured while at sea.
The navy says the survivors, who were found on Tuesday, were taken a naval base in the capital, Tripoli.
On Sunday, the Libyan navy said it rescued 272 migrants.
Libya descended into chaos following the 2011 uprising that toppled and killed longtime dictator Muammar Qaddafi. It has since become a frequently used route to Europe for those fleeing poverty and conflict.
Libya has increased efforts to stem the flow of migrants.


Siege on Syria’s Kobani ‘must be lifted immediately’: Turkiye’s pro-Kurdish DEM party

Updated 19 sec ago
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Siege on Syria’s Kobani ‘must be lifted immediately’: Turkiye’s pro-Kurdish DEM party

  • The situation in Kobani had escalated from a crisis into a “deadly catastrophe,” DEM said
  • “Both the military and humanitarian siege on Kobani must be lifted as soon as possible,” said Hatimogullari

ISTANBUL: Turkiye’s pro-Kurdish DEM party on Saturday called for the blockade on the Kurdish-majority city of Kobani in northern Syria to be lifted immediately, warning of a “humanitarian tragedy.”
The situation in Kobani had escalated from a crisis into a “deadly catastrophe,” DEM said after sending a delegation to visit northeastern Syria which over the past week has been targeted by a major Syrian military offensive.
The Kurdish-held city, which is also known as Ain Al-Arab, is surrounded by the Turkish border to its north and government forces on all sides.
It lies around 200 kilometers (125 miles) from the Kurds’ stronghold in Syria’s far northeast.
“Both the military and humanitarian siege on Kobani must be lifted as soon as possible,” said DEM co-chair Tulay Hatimogullari.
Kurdish forces have withdrawn from areas near Kobani over the past week following pressure from the Syrian military as President Ahmed Al-Sharaa seeks to extend his control across the country.
As the military offensive advanced, residents of surrounding villages flooded into Kobani, where they were now stranded, Hatimogullari said.
“Electricity has been cut off, the Internet is cut off, water is cut off. This is a great humanitarian tragedy,” she told a news conference.
“Guarantor countries.. must urgently carry out their responsibilities to lift the siege on northern and eastern Syria,” she said referring to the US and western allies who for years have thrown their support behind the Kurdish-dominated SDF forces which have been forced out of the area.