Authorities in eastern Libya have repatriated 602 migrants to Chad following security operations targeting people accused of entering or residing in the country irregularly, according to a spokesperson for the agency responsible for tackling irregular migration.
The spokesperson, Abdulmenam al-Ghomati, said the migrants were apprehended during recent security operations in several cities and areas under the control of the Libyan National Army (LNA), led by military commander Khalifa Haftar.
He described the operation as part of a campaign launched by the authorities under the slogan “protection of homeland and border”.
Ghomati said the repatriation exercise lasted one and a half days, with the migrants transported by trucks to the Chadian border.
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Images released by the media office of the anti-illegal migration agency in Benghazi showed pickup vehicles conveying groups of migrants through a remote area during the operation.
Ghomati said the campaign was continuing under orders from Saddam Haftar, the LNA deputy commander-in-chief.
He added that the directives also covered raids and the clearance of houses rented by migrants in residential neighbourhoods.
Libya remains divided between rival authorities in the east and west, with the LNA controlling the eastern region and large parts of the south.
The North African country has become a major transit route for migrants fleeing conflict and poverty in search of passage to Europe through dangerous desert crossings and journeys across the Mediterranean Sea.
Migration through Libya increased following the 2011 uprising that toppled former leader Muammar Gaddafi.
More than 900,000 migrants were estimated to be living across Libya’s 100 municipalities, according to United Nations data collected in May and June.
Reuters
