East and west Libyan authorities enforce migrant return programs
In an effort to curtail the country’s irregular migration crisis, both east and west Libyan authorities have started to enforce migrant return programs, according to The Libya Observer and the Libya Review on December 16th.
East Libya’s Anti-Illegal Migration Agency, operating from the city of Tobruk, has transferred 64 undocumented migrants to the Greater Benghazi shelter centre to prepare them for deportation back to their countries of origin, according to an official statement.
The group was comprised of 38 undocumented Sudanese nationals and 26 undocumented migrants from Ethiopia.
The agency recently expanded its operations, particularly across southern cities and valleys, to tackle Libya’s mass migration crisis, which has escalated due to regional conflict and instability.
The primary cause is Sudan’s civil war, which has forced over 412,000 Sudanese to flee the violence and seek refuge in Libya since the conflict erupted in April 2023, according to a report by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.
The report also warns that Tobruk has become a major hub for migrant smuggling and trafficking. This has transformed it into a key departure point for migrants crossing the Mediterranean Sea towards Greece.
On October 22nd, the Mixed Migration Centre’s North Africa quarterly update for the third quarter of 2025 reported a vast 318% surge in migrant arrivals to the Greek island of Crete in just one year.
The Foreign Minister of Libya’s eastern government, Abdel-Hadi Al-Hwaij, recently unveiled during a conference the “Benghazi Declaration.”
The declaration outlined a comprehensive Libyan framework which seeks to tackle the root causes of large-scale migration by broadening regional and international cooperation mechanisms.
Meanwhile, the Interior Minister of the west Libyan Government of National Unity (GNU), Emad al-Trabelsi, affirmed that the national program for the repatriation of illegal migrants is underway and making solid progress.
On December 15th, the Ministry of Interior oversaw the repatriation of a group of Syrian migrants from Mitiga International Airport. This was done in collaboration with the United Nations.
Al-Trabelsi underlined the need to work in partnership with various west Libyan authorities, such as the army and Ministry of defense.
The Libya Observer, Libya Review, Maghrebi.org, Mixed Migration Centre
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