The National Human Rights Commission in Libya has called on the Libyan authorities and the international community to take action to close migrant detention centers in Libya because of the coronavirus. According to the UN refugee agency (UNHCR), in January alone, 1,040 migrants and refugees were intercepted at sea and taken back to detention camps in Libya. For Walid Elhouderi, head of the Libyan Human Rights Commission, this situation is unacceptable, especially with the coronavirus crisis. “Even if these camps represent less than 5% of the African migrant population in Libya, we know that these people have absolutely no chance of surviving. We expect an unprecedented human calamity.”He said the National Human Rights Commission in Libya puts the main responsibility on the UN Refugee Agency as well as on the local governments.

Source: The North Africa Journal March 23, 2020 16:18 UTC