Benghazi, September 25 (Darfur24)
Libya’s eastern anti-illegal immigration agency said on Thursday that it had arrested hundreds of migrants, including Sudanese nationals, during raids on markets, residences and roads in the coastal city of Tobruk.
Videos posted by the agency, which Darfur24 reviewed and verified, showed large numbers of migrants being arrested and transported in commercial trucks to an undisclosed location.
Three Sudanese families told Darfur24 that their relatives were among those arrested and that their whereabouts remained unknown two days after the raids.
Salwa Adam, the sister of detainee Saif Al-Din Adam, said her brother left home on Wednesday morning for work at the clover market but did not return. The family later learned that he had been arrested during the security campaign.
She said the family searched for him at the headquarters of the anti-illegal immigration agency, which confirmed that hundreds of migrants had been arrested and said they would be deported outside Tobruk.
Ali Sharaf al-Din Abdullah told Darfur24 that two of his brothers and his nephew were arrested after authorities raided their residence on Wednesday.
He said another Sudanese resident who was outside the building at the time told the family that security personnel arrested everyone inside before ordering him to leave and posting an eviction notice on the property.
Darfur24 also documented three other testimonies from Sudanese families who said relatives had been detained during the raids carried out on Wednesday and Thursday.
Tobruk is a key departure point for migrants seeking to reach Greece by sea. Libya hosts about 500,000 registered Sudanese refugees, mainly in the east, amid growing pressure and calls for migrants’ expulsion.