TRIPOLI: No fewer than 80 Nigerians have been deported from Libya after authorities found them living in the country without valid documentation.
The deportation, which took place on Wednesday, was coordinated by Libya’s Department for Combating Illegal Migration (DCIM) in collaboration with the Nigerian Consulate.
The returnees were flown out of Mitiga International Airport in Tripoli, according to reports.
Humanitarian group Migrant Rescue Watch, which monitors migrant rights and welfare in Libya, confirmed the development in a post on X (formerly Twitter). The group stated that the repatriation followed directives from the Libyan Judicial Police Department and the Public Prosecutor’s Office.
Judicial Police Dept., on orders of the Public Prosecutor’s Office, transferred a group of undocumented migrant females of Nigerian nationality to DCIM custody in Tripoli. All females were served with judicial deportation orders and are awaiting deportation,” the organisation said.
Providing further details, the group added:
#Libya 11.11.25 – DCIM, with Nigerian consular support, repatriated 80 migrants of Nigerian nationality via Mitiga Int. Airport in Tripoli.
Libya has continued to clamp down on undocumented migrants in recent months amid growing concerns over irregular migration through North Africa to Europe.
Many Nigerians and other African nationals use Libya as a transit point in their attempt to cross the Mediterranean Sea
