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Eastern Libyan authorities have deported hundreds of Sudanese nationals to their war-ravaged homeland in what officials describe as an intensified crackdown on irregular migration and human trafficking. The large-scale expulsions represent a grim turn for many Sudanese who had fled conflict only to encounter renewed hardship in Libya.
In a statement issued Saturday, Libya’s Directorate for Combating Illegal Migration said “approximately 700 Sudanese migrants” were deported by land on Friday after being apprehended across central and southeastern Libya.
The statement cited multiple reasons for the expulsions, including “infectious diseases such as hepatitis and AIDS,” the presence of “criminal records,” and vague “security reasons.”
The deportations form part of a wider anti-smuggling campaign spearheaded by forces loyal to eastern military commander Khalifa Hifter. Authorities have increased operations along key trafficking routes in Libya’s east and south.
Just last week, the Libyan coast guard reportedly intercepted a vessel near Tobruk carrying 80 Europe-bound migrants. Earlier this month, security forces raided a suspected trafficking warehouse in Ajdabiya, freeing 104 Sudanese migrants, including women and children, who had been held captive.
Libya’s long Mediterranean coastline and permeable borders have made it a critical transit point for migrants fleeing violence and poverty across Africa and the Middle East. Since the 2011 NATO-backed ouster of Muammar Gaddafi, Libya’s political fragmentation and ongoing conflict have allowed smuggling networks to thrive under the watch of rival governments and militias.
Many of the Sudanese deported last week had sought refuge in Libya after war erupted in Sudan in April 2023. The ongoing conflict—triggered by a power struggle between the Sudanese military and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces—has displaced millions and plunged the country into humanitarian crisis.
