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Tag: Libya

  • Over 200 migrants in secret underground prison in Libya

    Over 200 migrants in secret underground prison in Libya

    Libya’s security authorities have freed over 200 migrants from a secret prison in Kufra in southeast of the country after they were held captive in inhumane conditions, security sources told Reuters.

    The security sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that the security authorities had found an underground prison, nearly three metres deep, which the sources said was run by a Libyan human trafficker.

    One of the sources said this person had not yet been detained.

    “Some of the freed migrants had been held captive for up to two years in the underground cells,” this source said.

    The other source said what the operation had found was “one of the most serious crimes against humanity that has been uncovered in the region.”

    “The operation resulted in a raid on a secret prison within the city, where several inhumane underground detention cells were uncovered,” one of the sources added.

    Up to ten survivors in the group bore signs of having been tortured before they were freed from captivity, security sources told Reuters.

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    The migrants are from sub-Saharan Africa, mainly from Somalia and Eritrea, including women and children, the sources said. Kufra lies in eastern Libya, about 1,700 kilometres from the capital Tripoli.

    Libya has become a transit route for migrants fleeing conflict and poverty to Europe via dangerous routes across the desert and over the Mediterranean since the toppling of Muammar Gadhafi in a NATO-backed uprising in 2011.

    The oil-based Libyan economy is also a draw for impoverished migrants seeking work, but security throughout the sprawling country is poor, leaving migrants vulnerable to abuses.

    At least 21 bodies of migrants were found in a mass grave in eastern Libya last week. Libya’s attorney general said in a statement on Friday the authorities in the east of the country had referred a defendant to the court for trial in connection with the mass grave on charges of “committing serious violations against migrants.”

    In February, last year, 39 bodies of migrants were recovered from about 55 mass graves in Kufra. The town houses tens of thousands of Sudanese refugees who fled the conflict that erupted in Sudan in 2023.

    Many contingents of Somali migrants have been deported from Libya in recent months.

  • Libya confirms death of army chief of staff

    Libya confirms death of army chief of staff

    •Plane signal lost near Ankara

    The Prime Minister of Libya’s U.N.-recognised Government of National Unity, Abdulhamid Dbeibah, said he had received news of the death of Libya’s army chief of staff, Mohammed Ali Ahmed Al-Haddad, after Haddad’s plane lost radio contact above Turkey’s Ankara.

    Dbeibah, mourning Haddad’s death, said the army chief of staff had been accompanied by others, including military officials.

    Radio contact was lost yesterday with the jet carrying Al-Haddad, shortly after takeoff from the Turkish capital Ankara en route to Tripoli, Turkish Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said.

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    Yerlikaya said on social media platform X that the jet had taken off at 1710 GMT and radio contact was lost at 1752 GMT. He said the flight had made a request for an emergency landing while over the Haymana district of Ankara, but that no contact was established after.

    Four others were on the jet, he added, while flight tracking data showed other flights being diverted away from Ankara’s Esenboga Airport.

    Turkey’s defence ministry had announced the Libyan chief of staff’s visit earlier, saying he had met with Turkish Defence Minister Yasar Guler and Turkish counterpart Selcuk Bayraktaroglu, along with other Turkish military commanders.

    While officials did not say whether the plane had crashed, footage on Turkish broadcasters showed a flash of light where the jet was said to have lost radio contact.

    There was no immediate comment from Libyan officials.

  • Two teenage girls rescued in Edo after failed trafficking attempt to Libya

    Two teenage girls rescued in Edo after failed trafficking attempt to Libya

    Two female minors, aged 13 and 14, including one living with sickle cell disease, have been rescued in Edo State while being trafficked en route to Libya.

    The girls had reached Zaria, Kaduna State, when their trafficker instructed them to return after his mother, Mrs. Comfort Etim, was taken into police custody. They had left Edo on Sunday but were safely brought back on Wednesday night.

    At the Edo State Migration Agency, the victims revealed that they were promised jobs as domestic workers for an elderly couple in Italy, but were cautioned not to inform their parents. 

    Read Also: FG to Nigerians: Libya is no escape route, it’s a trap – Dabiri-Erewa

    They said their sponsor placed them in a bus at Aduwawa Motor Park, Benin City, with instructions to call a contact upon arrival in Kano.

    One of the victims, identified as Success, recounted how the trafficker gave them food items and disguises, adding that she was relieved to have returned home. 

    The second girl, who is managing sickle cell, said she initially hoped to surprise her mother by travelling abroad.

    Director General of the Migration Agency, Lucky Agazumah, said the transport firm responsible for transporting unaccompanied minors would be sanctioned.

    Agazumah said other co-conspirators have been arrested.

    He vowed to ensure the traffickers face justice.

  • Nigerians in Libya deportation camp cry out for help

    Nigerians in Libya deportation camp cry out for help

    • Fed Govt directs Embassy in Tripoli to probe development

    Nigerians in a deportation camp in Libya have cried out for Federal Government’s, organisations’ and kind-hearted individuals’ help.

    They said the condition of the camp, which is run by a United Nation (UN) agency, is unbearable.

    The awaiting deportees urged Nigerian authorities and private organisations to come to their aid.

    Their call is contained in a viral video showing a number of Nigerians sandwiched in a holding facility.

    “They have been in the camp for seven months while awaiting deportation,” according to a man who narrated their ordeal in the video.

    Reacting to the viral video, the Federal Government said it had ordered an immediate investigation into the situation.

    According to the spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Kimiebi Imomotimi Ebienfa, the ministry had directed its Embassy in Tripoli to investigate the matter and report back.

    Ebienfa said: “We have contacted the Embassy of Nigeria in Tripoli to find out the details and report to the headquarters for necessary action.”

    Though unconfirmed, the man said many of the awaiting deportees had died as a result of the maltreatment they received from the host authorities.

    The man in the video said there were about 700 Nigerians at the deportation camp when they first got to there, but have reduced to about 400.

    He raised the alarm that the Nigerian migrants were dying almost daily in the facility.

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    The man added: “These are Nigerians, as you are watching this video. It is a clear picture of what we are passing through in Libya today, being August 5. Since over seven months that we have been in this so-called deportation camp, we’ve been dying in numbers: children, adults, teenagers, and women.”

    “When you take a close look at this video, it will explain the conditions that Nigerians are in, right here in Libya in a place called Brakchat, 60 kilometres away from Sabhā. And as we are watching this video, it is at our expense because we are restricted from the use of phones.

    “You can see how Nigerians are lying here for over seven months. This is how we keep dying and we keep counting dead souls on a daily basis. Even as of yesterday, we lost a child and a teenager here because of maltreatment and the punishments we are going through.

    “Please, as you are watching this video, it is a wake-up call for Nigeria’s intervention over our situation right here. And the number of Nigerians here is approximately 400, though we were up to 700 when we came here. The death rate here has increased and there are about 400 remaining.

    “Please, we have to do this video as a proof to Nigeria over what we are passing through here. If you watch this video, you will see some of us are bandaged. Some of us cannot even bring our hands down because of injuries that we have sustained…”

  • Stranded Nigerians in Libyan deportation camp cry out for help

    Stranded Nigerians in Libyan deportation camp cry out for help

    Nigerians held in a deportation camp in Libya have raised the alarm over inhumane conditions, calling on the Nigerian government and private organisations for urgent intervention.

    In a viral video, a middle-aged man narrated the ordeal of several Nigerians crammed into a holding facility reportedly run by a United Nations agency. He revealed that they have been confined in the camp for over seven months while awaiting deportation.

    According to him, the number of detainees has dropped from about 700 to 400, with many allegedly dying due to maltreatment and poor living conditions. “People are dying almost every day,” he lamented.

    The distressed detainees are pleading for swift rescue, describing the camp’s condition as unbearable and life-threatening.

    He said, “These are Nigerians as you are watching this video, it is a clear picture of what we are passing through in Libya, today being the 5th of August.  For over 7 months that we have been in this so-called deportation camp, dying in numbers, both children, adults and teenagers and women.

    “When you take a close look at this video, it will explain the conditions that Nigerians are in, right here in Libya, in a place called Brakchat, 60 kilometres away from Sabhā. And as we are watching this video, it is at our own expense because we are restricted from the use of phones.

    “You can see how Nigerians have been lying here for over 7 months. And this is how we keep lying, and we keep counting dead souls daily. Even as of yesterday, we lost a child and a teenager here because of maltreatment and the punishments we are going through here.

    “Please, as you are watching this video, it is a wake-up call for Nigeria’s intervention over our situation right here. And the number of Nigerians here is approximately 400 in number, though we were up to 700 when we came here. But the death rate here has declined to about 400 in approximation.

    “Please, we have to do this video as proof to Nigeria over what we are passing through here. If you watch this video, you will see some of us are bandaged. Some of us cannot even bring our hands down because of the casualties and injuries that we have sustained.

    “Even the UN, which is in charge of this deportation process, has none of its officials here to oversee what Nigerians are passing through here. Since we came here, none of them have come here to monitor the welfare and the well-being of the people. Even to some extent, when they come, they don’t allow them to come and see what people are passing through.

    “These are Nigerians with skills and graduates in numbers, people with futures, fathers, youth, vibrant youth. But this is the situation we find ourselves in. Please, Nigerians, help us, corporate bodies, and individuals.

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    “When you watch these videos, you will see so many people’s conditions, how deteriorating it is without medication for over seven months. People who travel in sound health, but they cannot access life or a good life because of malnourishment and treatment daily, including our women. Wherever you are, individuals, organisations and agencies, please, as you watch this video, under the risks.

    “It is for an intervention to come and take us back to our country. We came here to serve them, to work for them. We did not come here to steal or kill.

    “But on the contrary, they are treating us as if we have committed an offence. And on our day of arrival, they collected all our valuables, our international passports, our phones, our money and other valuables such that we cannot reach out to our people. But we cannot die here like this.

    “Even if we die here, let our country know what is going on here and the war at large. That is why we are taking these risks to do this video. It will be on the 5th of August, 2025.”

  • Over 250,000 Nigerians living as refugees in Libya, Cameroon, South Sudan, others

    Over 250,000 Nigerians living as refugees in Libya, Cameroon, South Sudan, others

    • Nigeria hosts 135,000

    Nigeria has over 250,000 refugees in Libya, South Sudan, Cameroon, Chad, Niger and other parts of the world.

    Conversely, at least 135,000 refugees live in Nigeria.

    Out of the 250,000 Nigerian refugees, 125,000 are resident in Cameroon.

     The National Commission for Refugees, Migrants, and Internally Displaced Persons (NCFRMI) gave the figures yesterday after a road walk in Abuja to commemorate 2025 World Refugee Day.

    The  Federal Commissioner of the Commission, Tijani Ahmed, who revealed that the Federal Government has set up a committee to look into a United States that might lead to the deportation of some Nigerians, said:  “We have a lot of refugees in Nigeria and outside Nigeria. In Nigeria today, we are hosting no less than 135,000 refugees.

    ‘’We also have no less than 250,000 Nigerian refugees living in other parts of the world. 

    “Particularly, we have no less than 125,000  Nigerians living in Cameroon. We also have Nigerians in Chad, Niger, South Sudan, Libya, and other parts of the world.

    “President Bola Tinubu has been supporting and is willing to offer more support to the commission  to  assist  migrants, refugees  and IDPs(Internally Displaced Persons).’’

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    On the likely deportation of some Nigerian migrants from the US, he said: “As far as we are concerned, it is a policy statement. However, Nigeria has been very proactive, and we have constituted a committee to look into it in case it becomes a reality. We are ready to receive our people and provide them with the kind of livelihood and support they deserve.

    “The Nigerian government is ready for that. The Nigerian government has already constituted a committee and is awaiting any action that might come from the U.S. So, there is no cause for alarm.’’

     A Senior Humanitarian Officer at the ECOWAS Commission, Alozie Godfrey,  highlighted the efforts of the commission to support persons of concern within the region.

    He said $9 million was allocated last year to assist refugees in 15 member states.

    His words: “Last year, we basically assisted refugees in all ECOWAS 15 member states, and all their persons of concern, to the tune of about $9 million. The government of Nigeria got about $1.7 million of this money.

    “This year, we are also working to assist refugees and internally displaced persons all around West Africa, and particularly in Nigeria, where we have our headquarters, to make sure that refugees are given the rights they are supposed to get, and make sure that we also assist them.

    “ECOWAS Commission remains concerned with issues of refugees, and we will continue to work hand in glove with our partners to make sure that we assist them to the best of our ability, given the lean resources that we have.”

  • Govt receives 180 stranded Nigerians from Libya

    Govt receives 180 stranded Nigerians from Libya

    The Federal Government has received 180 Nigerians who were stranded in Libya.

    Their return was facilitated by the Nigerian Mission in Tripoli and the International Organisation for Migration (IOM).

    The returnees were received at the cargo terminal of the Murtala Mohamed International Airport (MMIA) in Lagos on Wednesday night.

    The returnees comprised 76 males, 92 females, eight children and four infants.

    A Federal Commissioner at the National Commission for Refugees Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons (NCFRMI), Tijani Ahmed, promised that in line with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda, the returnees would be integrated into various government programmes as well as the reintegration programmes of the UN Migration Agency (IOM).

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    Ahmed, who was represented by the commission’s Southwest Zonal Coordinator, Mr. Alexander Oturu, said the migrants were conveyed to the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency camp where the NCFRMI and IOM have a tripartite agreement to provide temporary shelter for the returnees before they get onward transportation allowance to enable them get to their final destinations.

    A statement yesterday in Abuja by Mr. Oturu said the Edo State Migration Agency, led by its Director General, Lucky Agazuma, also attended the reception to convey the state indigenes free of charge to Benin, the Edo State capital.

    Officers from the NCFRMI and the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) profiled the migrants, while officers from Port Health of the Federal Aviation Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), the Federal Ministry of Labour (Migrants Resource Centre), the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), Child Protection Network, and Web of Hearts Foundation, were on hand to give the returnees a hitch-free reception.

  • A well-deserved big stick

    A well-deserved big stick

    • CAF’s fine against Libya for maltreating Nigerian team is in order

    Football, like all games is ruled by often very strict rules. Obedience to these rules guarantees that sports play its socially functional rules. The idea of sportsmanship stems from the expectation that sports in its purest form be taken as recreational and uniting, not just in communities but on the global scale. Global sports has more than politics or economic activities been a more uniting force across nations, in spite of racial, religious or class differences.

    Football is globally described as the ‘beautiful game’ for a reason. It is the most universally popular game across the world. It has become the most popular and most economically viable game with very strong national leagues, sub-national, regional, sub-regional, continental and global (World Cup) competitions that provide entertainment and passionate following for lovers of the game.

    The  Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), is the international governing body for association football, futsal, and beach soccer. Founded in1904, the body oversees the organisation of football globally. Continental and regional organisations like Confederation of African

    Football (CAF) and Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and others are charged with organising competitions and maintenance of law and order.

    It was therefore very apposite that CAF wielded the big stick on Libya penultimate week, when they investigated the treatment meted to the Nigerian Super Eagles who were due to play a second leg AFCON qualifying match in Benghazi, Libya. The Nigerian team had their flight diverted from Benghazi to Al-Abraq International Airport without prior notice. The flight was diverted to Al-Abraq and the players and crew were kept waiting for over 12 hours, with no decent accommodation, food or water.

    CAF Disciplinary Board said because Libya violated AFCON Regulations and the CAF Disciplinary Code —specifically Articles 31, 82, and 151 –  CAF had declared the match forfeited by Libya and awarded Nigeria a 3-0 victory. In addition, Libya was fined $50,000 to be paid before 60 days from the date of the ruling. Even though Libya has indicated its readiness to appeal the decision, it remains to be seen what their new arguments would be.

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    The controversy raging in Libya over the decision of the committee has shocked many, given that every football governing body across the footballing nations is expected to be familiar with the rules of the game. However, the allegation that the decision has elicited a political reaction from some Libyans has raised outrage in Nigeria. It is alleged that some Libyan citizens are using the social media to call for the deportation of some Nigerians, and a tax of about $500 in a seeming punitive measure.

    This tastes very sore in the mouth as a continental competition is supposed to be about displaying the best form of sportsmanship and camaraderie. However, CAF takes a part of the blame. Given the political chaos in Libya since the death of its former leader, Muammar Gaddafi, there has been no stable government in the country. There have been internal conflicts and struggle for power. A ban from competitions for Libya might just have spurred the people to reunite and organise credible elections.

    CAF might claim that they do not allow politics to meddle with the game, but tragedy can be avoided by being more circumspect, especially for a conflict-ridden country like Libya. On another hand, many commend CAF for wielding the big stick against Libya in this instance. It is a good lesson to send to other nations that might decide to toe the same path.

    We however recommend that the Federal Government, through the foreign affairs ministry, must investigate the allegation about Nigerians being threatened with deportation and illegal taxes. While we do not recommend illegal migration into any country, a football issue should not offer any country the cover under which to punish citizens of other countries. FIFA has always tried to separate politics and the game of football. Libya has a very notorious relationship with black immigrants that have been seen through videos and pictures being physically and sexually abused for just being black. Nigeria must protect its citizens by rejecting extra-judicial maltreatment of Nigerians as retaliation for any CAF punishment.

  • A lacerating lesson for Libya

    A lacerating lesson for Libya

     Sir: The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has finally and heavily descended on Libya for the provocative shambles that turned Africa’s most successful and glamorous team into hostages at a Libyan airport for about 16 hours between October 13 and 14. It is deeply satisfying to know that such scandalous and cowardly acts that stain the face of the beautiful game on the continent will not be tolerated going forward.

    The Libyans have appealed the verdict, but to allow their half-hearted appeal sail through would set African football back many years and endorse the dark arts which have been an especially fearsome feature of North African countries in recent time.

    One easily recalls the tempestuous 2010 World Cup qualifying match between Egypt and Algeria which saw both countries accuse each other of food poisoning before a solitary Antar Yahia strike in Sudan sent Algeria to the World Cup and the expense of Egypt.

    It is not for nothing that football is called the beautiful game. It has helped to remove the ugly moments in many aspects of life and society. After all, it was around football that iconic former Ivorian footballer and captain of the national team, Didier Drogba, united warring factions to end what had been a devastating civil war.

    Having slumped to defeat in the first leg in Uyo  despite some expert time-wasting, the Libyans, rather than concentrate on settling scores on the pitch in Benghazi, decided to do it at an airport, thereby risking the lives of some of the biggest sports stars on the planet.

    It is a great thing that CAF is not allowing Libya set a template for how visiting teams are to be treated in African football. While football sometimes ignores dark arts, those dark arts backfire spectacularly when they are not done with enough smarts.

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     With a single point through six qualifying matches, the Mediterranean Knights of Libya are rooted to the bottom of Group D. That is where they deserve to be for deploying such base tactics against Africa’s most successful team, one which has always treated visiting teams with supreme dignity. Rather than concentrate on matters on the pitch where they had a better chance of grinding out a result, they chose to battle at an airport for which they have been fined heavily.

    Let it be etched somewhere in the local lore of Libya that the Super Eagles of Nigeria went to their country spent 16 excruciating hours at a remote airport and left with three points, three goals while fetching their ungenerous hosts a hefty fine of $50,000.

    Lessons don’t come harder than this, or sweeter, for that matter.

     •Ike Willie-Nwobu,Ikewilly9@gmail.com

  • Inside CAF disciplinary codes that nailed Libya

    Inside CAF disciplinary codes that nailed Libya

    The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has awarded the Super Eagles three points and fined the Libya Football Federation 50,000 USD. 

    In the statement  by Ousmane Kane, Chairperson of CAF Disciplinary Board on October 26, 2024, the Governing body ruled on the botched Africa qualifiers between Nigeria and Libya. 

    It reads: “The Libya Football Federation is found to have breached Article 31 of the African Cup of Nations Regulations as well as Articles 82 and 151 of the CAF Disciplinary Code.

    “The match No.87 Libya v. Nigeria of the CAF African Cup of Nations Qualifiers 2025 (scheduled to be played on 15 October 2024 in Benghazi) is declared lost by forfeit by Libya (by a score of 3-0).”

    However, not many know the contents of the disciplinary codes. 

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    Below are the contents of the disciplinary codes CAF found Libya guilty of. 

    1. CAF Disciplinary Code 31: Absolute Discretion Regarding Proof
    2. CAF Disciplinary Code 82: Principles Of Conduct
    3. CAF Disciplinary Code 151: Security For Organization Of Matches