Thousands of migrants rescued off Libya by European vessels
30 Aug 2016 10:08 AM IST30 Aug 2016 10:08 AM IST
In images and videos, migrants from Eritrea and Somalia cheered as rescue boats arrived, with some swimming towards them.
Italian naval ships and vessels from nongovernmental groups rescued thousands of migrants off the Libyan coast on Monday, the latest surge in desperate attempts to flee to Europe driven by war, poverty, and human traffickers.- Rights groups and experts estimate that there are about 3,500 migrants held in roughly 20 official detention facilities across Libya. Others are held in informal detention centers controlled by criminal gangs or armed groups.
- In June, the European Union expanded its anti-smuggling operation in the central Mediterranean to include training Libyan coastal and naval forces, which are intercepting boats and returning migrants to Libya, where some are being held in abusive conditions.
- Since the 2011 ouster and killing of longtime Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi, the country has sunk into lawlessness, facing a myriad of militias vying for influence and an emerging Islamic State affiliate.
- Libya's chaos and lack of border controls have made it into a transit route.
- Tens of thousands of Africans take the dangerous Mediterranean Sea route as a gateway to a better life in Europe, alongside those fleeing wars from Syria to Afghanistan.
- In images and videos, migrants from Eritrea and Somalia cheered as the rescue boats arrived, with some jumping into the water and swimming toward them while others carefully carried babies onto the rescue ships.
- The dramatic operation took place just 21 km (13 miles) north of the town of Sabratha in Libya. Groups such as Proactiva Open Arms and Doctors Without Borders helped take on some 3,000 people who had been traveling in some 20 small wooden boats.
Italian naval ships and vessels from nongovernmental groups rescued thousands of migrants off the Libyan coast on Monday, the latest surge in desperate attempts to flee to Europe driven by war, poverty, and human traffickers.
In images and videos, migrants from Eritrea and Somalia cheered as rescue boats arrived, with some swimming towards them.
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