Over 1500 migrant workers living in camps detained by Libya

On July 26th, Libya’s Ministry of Labour announced that authorities had raided informal settlements east of Tripoli and detained over 1500 migrants, according to the Libya Review.

The settlement targeted is made up of high walls surrounding makeshift camps, with some informal economic activity for those residing in it.

The camp holds a grocery shop, a butcher, and a vegetable stand according to the Libya Review.

However, the Ministry of Labour stated that the camp failed to meet “basic requirements for proper housing, health, and occupational safety.”

Labour Minister Ali-Al-Abed describes the camps as “large, unregulated housing clusters for foreign labour.”

Those detained were foreign workers, and Al-Abed’s statement said that the workers were of various nationalities and were lacking residence permits, official documentation or medical checks.

Al-Abed said that “these groups have not undergone any formal procedures or health screening.”

The foreign workers detained have been taken to the facilities of the Department for Combatting Illegal Migration to apply legal measures.

Whether those who have been detained is not yet clear, although it’s believed that many are from Egypt and sub-Saharan Africa.

This would include Sudan, a nation neighbouring Libya that has been in a violent civil war since 2023, causing a constant influx of migrants from Sudan into Libya.

According to UN figures, the number of Sudanese nationals trying to reach Europe has increased by 134% compared with 2024.

On July 18th, Libyan authorities deported seven hundred Sudanese people who had been detained.

Furthermore, Libya is a key transit point for migrants travelling from North Africa to Europe, which European countries and the EU are keen to limit.

Libyan and Greek naval forces are often intercepting migrant boats in the Mediterranean sea. Libyan authorities return these migrants to Libya, where the detention conditions have been condemned by the UN and humanitarian organisations as inhumane.

Libya Review/Maghrebi