Thousands of trapped immigrants found in Sabratha camps

BY Libyan Express Oct 08, 2017 - 15:00

Immigrants at shelter centers (Photo: Archive – Internet)

Thousands of migrants have been found trapped in camps in Libya the past days after they were caught amid the fighting over the northwestern city of Sabratha, officials said Sunday, according to the Associated Press.

Over 4,000 migrants, including pregnant women and children, were found in the past two days in different locations in town, said Saleh Graisia, the spokesman for Anti-ISIS Operation Room. The group is now …in control of the city of Sabratha.
Graisia accused the al-Ammu brigade — which struck a deal with Italy and Libya to stop trafficking — of storing the migrants to smuggle them later. It wasn’t immediately possible to reach al-Ammu for comment.

Essam Karrar, the head of the Sabratha Civil Society Federation, said 1,700 migrants were found at the western edge of Sabratha, which used to be under control of al-Ammu, while the rest were scattered elsewhere. He said al-Ammu intended to deport the migrants, AP reported.

The city is now “healing its wounds” after the fighting shattered families and brothers raised guns against each other, it added.

“We the people in Sabratha were only tools in the hands of Europeans,” he said.

The deal with Italy led to a dramatic drop in migration from Sabratha but some in Libya feared the salaries and supplies would enrich the armed groups and make them more powerful. The boost to one side threw off the balance of power in Sabratha, triggering a backlash from other local froces.

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