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Bodies of 17 irregular migrants washed ashore in Libya

October 7, 2021 at 9:05 am

Libyan Red Crescent team members recover bodies of migrants who drowned at sea off the coast of the western city of Janzur on June 19, 2018 [STR/AFP via Getty Images]

The Libyan Red Crescent announced yesterday that 17 bodies, likely of Europe-bound migrants, have washed ashore in western Libya.

According to the organisation, the bodies were found near the coastal city of Zawiya and were handed over to local authorities for burial.

“More than 1,100 migrants have died or are presumed to have died in numerous boat accidents and shipwrecks off Libya this year,” the statement said.

Libya has been beset by violence since the NATO-backed overthrow of dictator Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.

This situation has turned the war torn country into a departure land for human traffickers who smuggle migrants from Africa to Europe.

READ: Libya, Niger discuss irregular migration crisis