In Bangladesh, the route to Europe is known as "the game". With the help of a dalaal -- a travel agent -- many Bangladeshis hope to make it to a country where jobs are plentiful and they can earn money to send home. But now the international crime agency Interpol is seeking to crack down on the kingpin Bangladeshi smugglers in Libya and a warrant is out for their arrest.
International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor Fatou Bensouda has asked the UN in Libya to adopt concrete measures to end impunity in the country, and bring to justice those who have committed serious crimes and crimes against humanity.
A 15-year-old asylum seeker was killed during an attack on a Tripoli shelter earlier this week. Now, the United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator for Libya has asked local authorities to investigate the killing and prosecute the perpetrators.
Within three days, Libya's coast guard intercepted 935 migrants in the Mediterranean and returned them to Libya. The International Organization for Migration (IOM) once again denounced the longstanding practice in light of the documented abuse and exploitation that await returnees in Libyan detention camps.
The IOM reported that at least 11 migrants, including a pregnant woman, have drowned on Sunday when their boat capsized off the coast of Libya trying to reach Europe. The incident was the third of its kind in the Mediterranean in a week.
Almost 3,200 people are being held in eleven detention centers in Libya, according to IOM and UNHCR insiders. This includes many refugees fleeing armed conflicts and persecution.
The UN-recognized government in Libya has detained a coastguard commander Abdalrahman Al-Milad in connection with human trafficking and migrant smuggling. The UN Security Council previously accused him of intentionally sinking migrant boats.
An armed group in Libya is reported to have kidnapped 60 migrants — including two dozen children — about two weeks ago. They are holding them hostage in "appalling living conditions," according to the latest statement from Doctors Without Borders (MSF).
A young Nigerian man was burned alive in Libya earlier this week, according to UN and government officials. The men accused of setting him on fire have been arrested. An investigation into the incident is under way.
According to reports, Abou was just 15 years old when he died on Monday. A migrant from Ivory Coast, he was rescued by the Open Arms ship in September and spent 12 days quarantining on the ferry Allegra off Palermo. Now questions are being asked about his death. An investigation is underway in Sicily.
Thousands of desperate migrants bound for Europe have perished in the Mediterranean Sea. In one impoverished Egyptian town, families fear that 15 of their sons are among the dead.
The UN migration agency IOM reported on Friday, September 25, that a shipwreck off the Libyan coast had left at least 13 dead and 22 survivors which were brought ashore by fishing vessels.