CAIRO: The UN’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.
Earlier this week, Libya’s criminal investigations authority reported the grave had been found in the Shuayrif region, 350 kilometers (220 miles) south of the capital, Tripoli.
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 specified graveyard for later investigation.
The UN’s International Organization for Migration said the nationalities of the discovered migrants and the circumstances of their deaths was not known, but that they likely died while being smuggled through the desert.
Libya is a major route for migrants making their way from other parts of Africa and intending to cross the Mediterranean Sea to Europe. Human traffickers have benefited from the political chaos in Libya to smuggle migrants across its long, desert borders, often a deadly route. Once at the coast, migrants are crowded onto ill-equipped vessels, including rubber boats, and set off on risky sea voyages.
According to the IOM’s Missing Migrants Project, at least 962 migrants were reported dead and 1,563 missing off Libya in 2023. Those who are intercepted and returned to Libya are held in government-run detention centers rife with abuses, including forced labor, beatings, rapes and torture.
The latest deaths show the need for a coordinated response to migrants and smuggling, including “regular pathways that provide opportunities for legal migration” and greater efforts by governments all along the routes to ensure migrants’ safety, the IOM said.
Mass grave with bodies of at least 65 migrants found in the deserts of western Libya
https://arab.news/8m74p
Mass grave with bodies of at least 65 migrants found in the deserts of western Libya
- On its Facebook page, it said 65 bodies of unidentified migrants had been unearthed from the grave
- The UN’s International Organization for Migration said the nationalities of the discovered migrants and the circumstances of their deaths was not known
Syrian authorities bust smuggling ring, tighten border controls
- Smugglers' boat collides with rocks as it attempted to flee pursuing as Coast Guard vessels
- The boat was about to illegally transport passengers from the Syrian coast of Tartus coast to Cyprus
DAMASCUS: Syrian Coast Guard forces have arrested members of a human smuggling network operating in the western town of Tartus, the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) reported Saturday.
Authorities pounced on the smugglers as they were about to transport passengers from the Tartus coast to Cyprus by illegal means, the state media said, citing a statement from the General Authority of Ports and Customs.
"The operation resulted in the arrest of all those involved, including the organizers of the trip," said the report, adding that the smugglers' boat attempted to escape as Coast Guard vessels surrounded it, but collided with rocks.
No details were made available on how many suspects were arrested and how many passengers were rescued. Criminal charges are being prepared against the arrested suspects, SANA said.
New restrictions on commercial transit
In a separate move to regulate trade and border security, the ports and customs authority has issued a new policy restricting truck access at land crossings and seaports.
Commercial trucks will now only be permitted entry for loading or unloading upon presentation of an original receipt from the Ministry of Transport’s freight office.
The transfer of cargo between Syrian and non-Syrian vehicles must now take place strictly within designated customs yards at border crossings.
Trucks passing through Syria in transit remain permitted, provided they are under a mandatory customs escort between entry and exit points.
