CAIRO (AP) — Libyan authorities say they have raided a secret prison in a southeastern city used by human traffickers and freed at last 156 African migrants – including 15 women and five children. Security forces arrested at least six traffickers and referred them to prosecutors for further investigation, the bureau said. The migrants, who are from Somalia, Eritrea, and Sudan, were freed and taken to the shelter center where they were given food, clothes, and blankets. The raid shows the perils that refugees and migrants face in conflict-stricken Libya, which has emerged as a major transit point for African and Arab migrants fleeing war and poverty to Europe. By AP NewsIn this November 29, 2013 file photo, migrants cover themselves with blankets in a detention center in the Abu Salim district on the outskirts of Tripoli, Libya.

Source: Egypt Independent February 22, 2021 13:18 UTC