UNHCR says nearly 91 undocumented migrants were rescued from Libya's western coast

United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) announced on Thursday that nearly 91 undocumented immigrants have been recovered from Libya's western coast. As per the UNHCR statement, 91 illegal migrants who spent two days at sea in a rubber boat with scant supplies were taken back to the nation's capital Tripoli on Wednesday night. The illegal migrants were mostly from the countries such as Ethiopia and Eritrea. 

The UNHCR along with its medical collaborator, the International Rescue Committee (IRC), supplied relief goods and medical assistance to the migrants. Of the total 91 individuals, there were 12 women and four children, the UNHCR statement stated. According to the UN agency, for protection, there is a need for safe and convenient paths from Libya for individuals.  

Other rescue instances of illegal migrants off the Libyan coast

Meanwhile, a few days back on September 15, UNHCR stated that over 400 unlawful migrants had been rescued and repatriated to Libya. UNHCR further reported that following being rescued, 32 people were landed at Azzawiya Refinery point in western Libya, while 313 other immigrants were brought to Tripoli. Further, UNHCR and (IRC) gave emergency medical and humanitarian aid to all survivors. In the rescued group of migrants, there were 28 women and four children. 

Whereas just a day earlier, on September 14, Libya's Interior Ministry announced that it had apprehended about 109 undocumented immigrants on their way to Europe in the western city of Zliten, some 160 kilometres east of Tripoli. According to the ministry, the illegal immigrants are made up of 16 Eritrean women and two Sudanese children. 

The International Organization for Migration has revealed that over 25,285 illegal migrants which comprise women and children have been retrieved so far in the year 2021, whereas hundreds more have perished or gone missing off the Libyan coast on the Central Mediterranean crossing. Since the assassination of late Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi in the year 2011, Libya has become a favoured departure point for undocumented migrants seeking to transit across the Mediterranean Sea to European coastlines. The rescued migrants wind themselves in congested receiving centres across Libya.

(Image: AP/ Representative image)