7 illegal immigrants drown off Libyan coast: IOM

By:Xinhua
update:November 24,2020

TRIPOLI, Nov.24,2020 -- The International Organization for Migration (IOM) said on Monday that seven illegal immigrants drowned off the Libyan coast over the past week.

"In the period of 17-23 November, the bodies of 7 immigrants washed up on shore and no survivors returned to Libya," IOM said.

The IOM also said that 11,765 illegal immigrants have been rescued and returned to Libya so far in 2020, compared with 9,225 in 2019.

The IOM also revealed that a total of 312 illegal immigrants died and 414 others went missing on the Central Mediterranean route so far this year, compared with 270 deaths and 992 missing immigrants last year.

Following the ouster and killing of its leader Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, Libya has been mired in a state of insecurity and chaos that has prompted thousands of illegal immigrants to cross the Mediterranean Sea toward Europe from the country.

Thousands of illegal immigrants, who were either rescued at sea or arrested by the authorities, remain detained inside overcrowded detention centers in Libya, despite repeated international calls to close those centers.