A total of 149 refugees and asylum seekers were evacuated on Thursday in Rome due to the deteriorating situation in Libya, according to the United Nations High Commissioner Refugees (UNHCR).
The evacuees were Eritrean, Somali, Sudanese and Ethiopian, including 65 children, said the UNHCR, adding that the evacuation took place in cooperation with the Libyan and Italian authorities.
The UNHCR noted that many of the evacuees need to be treated because of the malnutrition they suffered during their stay in the shelter.
Since the beginning of 2019, the UNHCR has evacuated many refugees and migrants from Libya due to lack of security, notably after clashes erupted in early April, forcing more than 83,000 Libyans to flee their homes.
“More humanitarian evacuations are needed. They are a vital lifeline for refugees whose only other escape route is to put their lives in the hands of unscrupulous smugglers and traffickers on the Mediterranean Sea,” said Jean-Paul Cavalieri, UNHCR Chief of Mission in Libya.
