Eastern Libyan forces loyal to Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar, commander of the Tobruk-based Libyan National Army, have expelled thousands of Egyptians back to their home country.
They were reportedly illegally encamped in Libya, and were taken to the Libyan border and deported to Egypt, which involved a two kilometre trek on foot back home.
Amid Libya’s eastern forces’ attempt to crackdown on smugglers, they discovered some 4,000 migrants during raids following a gun battle that erupted between security personnel and human traffickers who were themselves being deported.
Egyptian security sources have stated that out of the 4,000 migrants, only about 2,200 were there illegally and it was they who were deported. Most held Egyptian citizenship, while many of the rest were of African nationalities.
Libya continues to attract migrants seeking to reach Europe by boat in what is a perilous journey: about half a million are currently in Libya, according to migration agencies. Some of them, it is claimed, remain stuck in the country enduring slave-like conditions, forced to toil for no pay while they hope to be able to either return home or reach Europe.
As migration to the Mediterranean has picked up, the number of immigrants attempting to reach Italy from Libya has gone back to pre-pandemic levels. Although some security agencies in Libya, particularly Haftar’s Libyan National Army, have exerted force in crackdowns on people smugglers, many human traffickers seeking to exploit migrants for profit can still operate relatively safely there.
Libya continues to be mired in chaotic conflict marked by tribal tensions and militia rule in many of its territories. Such conflict manifests as almost outright civil war between the western factions in the region of Tripolitania and the eastern factions in the region Cyrenaica.
The western areas of Libya are controlled by various armed factions under the control of the Government of National Unity in Tripoli, although it pretty much relies on the support of local militias. The eastern side of Libya is controlled by Haftar, whose Libyan National Army is made up of members of various militias and the House of Representatives in Tobruk.
Since the NATO and US-backed revolution in 2011, many migrants have attempted to reach Europe as people smugglers exploit a power vacuum in Libya. Now Europe is being forced to focus its attention on Libya to find a long-term solution, as migration returns as a top concern for European citizens and for Europe’s safety.
Alessandra Bocchi is Associate Editor at Brussels Signal
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