Libya deports 147 illegal migrants to Nigeria

Illegal migrants line up to get on a bus outside a deportation office in Tripoli, Libya, on Dec. 4, 2023. The Libyan Illegal Migration Control Department on Monday announced the deportation of 147 illegal migrants back to Nigeria. (Photo by Hamza Turkia/Xinhua)

TRIPOLI, Dec. 4 (Xinhua) -- The Libyan Illegal Migration Control Department on Monday announced the deportation of 147 illegal migrants back to Nigeria.

"A group of 147 illegal migrants from Nigeria were deported via Tripoli Mitiga International Airport to their country," said Fathi Shnebbu, head of the Department's information and documentation office.

He said the deported migrants include 122 women and 25 men.

"Those migrants were involved in criminal groups and committed crimes of drug trafficking, firearms trafficking, and prostitution," Shnebbu said.

Because of the instability and chaos in the country since the fall of late leader Muammar Gaddafi's regime in 2011, many migrants, mostly Africans, chose to cross the Mediterranean Sea to European shores from Libya.

So far this year, a total of 15,057 illegal migrants have been rescued and returned to Libya, according to the International Organization for Migration.

Illegal migrants wait to depart at the Libyan Illegal Migration Control Department in Tripoli, Libya, on Dec. 4, 2023. The Libyan Illegal Migration Control Department on Monday announced the deportation of 147 illegal migrants back to Nigeria. (Photo by Hamza Turkia/Xinhua)

Illegal migrants leave the Libyan Illegal Migration Control Department in Tripoli, Libya, on Dec. 4, 2023. The Libyan Illegal Migration Control Department on Monday announced the deportation of 147 illegal migrants back to Nigeria. (Photo by Hamza Turkia/Xinhua)