503 illegal immigrants, 5 of whom Egyptian rescued in Libya

CAIRO – 19 May 2017: A total of 503 unregistered migrants, including five Egyptians were rescued by Libya’s border guards, 11 miles north of Sabratha city, according to a statement by the Libyan naval forces spokesperson, Commodore Ayoub Kassem on Thursday.

The statement said that the Libyan naval forces recovered 463 unregistered migrants from the waters, while 40 people others of different African nationalities were rescued after exchanging fire with traffickers.

Kassem revealed that most of the rescued immigrants are of Arab, Bengali and Ghanaian nationalities including five Egyptian citizens, 98 Syrians, 127 Moroccans, 38 Tunisians and 30 Sudanese.

In March 2017, the Libyan navy thwarted an illegal migration attempt of 319 persons, including seven Egyptians, in the Mediterranean 19 miles north of Sabratha city.