Migrant camps in Libya are called ‘inhuman’

ABIDJAN, COTE D’IVOIRE— Between 400,000 and 700,000 African migrants are living in camps in Libya, often under “inhuman” conditions, the chairman of the African Union Commission said Thursday at the close of a summit of European and African leaders.

Moussa Faki Mahamat stressed the urgency of removing the thousands of migrants, including women and children, from the camps, as he addressed the summit where migration was a top issue after recent footage of a migrant slave auction in Libya drew global horror and condemnation.

At least 3,800 migrants in a camp in Tripoli need to be removed as soon as possible, Mahamat said. Most of them come from West Africa.

“That’s just one camp,” he said. “The Libyan government has told us there are 42,” and some contain an even larger number of migrants.

The International Organization for Migration says more than 423,000 migrants had been identified in the chaotic North African country as of last month. The majority are men from impoverished countries across sub-Saharan Africa.

The European Union and African leaders pledged Wednesday to do more to help the thousands of migrants stranded in squalid detention centres in Libya, the main jumpingoff point for desperate people setting out in unseaworthy boats in search of better lives in Europe.

At least 3,000 people drown or go missing annually in attempts to cross the Mediterranean.