IOM to send diplomatic visit to Libya’s migrants’ detentions

IOM has assisted representatives from seven West African embassies in Libya to visit an immigration detention centre in Tripoli where their nationals are being held as irregular migrants.

On Monday (8 August) IOM worked with Libyan authorities to facilitate the visit by diplomats from Senegal, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea Conakry, Ghana, Nigeria, The Gambia and Chad to Salah Al Dein detention centre. The centre is run by the Libyan Directorate for Combating Illegal Migration (DCIM) and is currently holding 350 West African nationals.

The aim of the visit was for the diplomats to check on conditions in which their nationals are being held and explore possible ways and means for their release, as well as to identify those interested in voluntary humanitarian repatriation. Some 330 of the 350 migrants in the centre expressed an interest in voluntary return to their countries of origin.

The visit was part of IOM’s European Union-funded project: “Repatriation Assistance for Vulnerable Migrants Stranded inside Libya and Promoting Stability in Libya’s Southern Regions”.