More than 100 children intercepted off Libyan coast
2021 has been a deadly year for people seeking to cross the Mediterranean from Libya to Europe, and around 1,000 children are currently detained in Libya in connection with migration attempts.
More than 100 children, most of them without their parents, were intercepted off the coast of Libya this past week, according to the UN body responsible for children. Dangerous overseas migration from Libya to Europe is continuing in 2021.
“The Central Mediterranean continues to be one of the deadliest and most dangerous migration routes in the world,” UNICEF’s North Africa director Ted Chaiban and Europe director Afshan Khan said in a press release Friday.
A total of 125 children were rescued in the Mediterranean Sea near Libya this week, among them 114 unaccompanied minors, UNICEF said.
In terms of all migrants in 2021, at least 350 people have drowned or gone missing attempting to cross the central Mediterranean to Europe this year, including 130 last week. Moreover, 4,005 had been intercepted at sea by the Libyan coast guard in 2021 as of Mach 31. And more than 8,600 people have reached Europe this year via the Central Mediterranean, according to UNICEF.
