Tobruk, June 19(Darfur 24)
The fate of dozens of migrants of various nationalities, including Sudanese, who went missing in the Mediterranean Sea after setting sail from the eastern Libyan city of Tobruk towards the Greek coast last week remains uncertain.
Jamal al-Din Suleiman, a relative of a missing illegal immigrant , told Darfur 24 that three boats set sail from Tobruk on June 10, carrying more than 120 migrants, including his cousin Ibrahim Saeed, who informed his family of his intention to leave the day before the trip.
He explained that they had lost contact with him since then and later received unconfirmed news from his friends that the three boats had sunk. They indicated that among the missing were 67 Sudanese who had not been found as of Wednesday, he said.
Separately, the family of one of the victims from the city of Kutum in North Darfur State told Darfur 24 that four residents of the city were on the trip and were later informed of their deaths. They were Khaled Adam, Abdullah Adam Idris, and Muawia Hatem, in addition to another young man whose identity has not yet been determined.
The family stated that they had lost contact with their sons since June 10, after they had decided to migrate.
According to Darfur 24 sources in Libya, the majority of the missing persons come from various areas in Sudan, most notably the city of Nyala in South Darfur, North Darfur, and the city ofEl Nuhood in West Kordofan, as well as the states of Sennar and Al Jazirah.
Libyan authorities have not yet commented on the incident.
According to the International Organization for Migration’s latest statement on migration in the Mediterranean, a total of 1,969 illegal imigrants were intercepted at sea and returned to Libya between May 18 and June 14, 2025, according to official data.
The highest number of interceptions occurred during the week of June 8-14, with 635 migrants intercepted, followed by the period from May 18 to 24, with 620 migrants intercepted.
In the first week of June, specifically from June 1 to 7, 414 migrants were intercepted, while the number intercepted between May 25 and 31 reached 300.
It should be noted that interceptions and returns to Libya continue to raise concerns among international human rights organizations, given the dire humanitarian conditions migrants face in detention centers inside Libya.
Libya hosts thousands of Sudanese refugees, particularly in the eastern cities of Kufra, Benghazi, and Ajdabiya, as well as Misrata and Tripoli in the west.
According to the latest statistics from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the number of Sudanese refugees registered in Libya as of June reached approximately 313,000.