© UNHCR/Caroline GluckUNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, has evacuated yesterday evening (Thursday 19 Nov) a group of 79 vulnerable asylum-seekers out of Libya to safety in Rwanda. These critical, life-saving flights from Libya to Rwanda had been on hold for nearly a year because of COVID-19-related worldwide border closures and movement restrictions. These evacuation flights are a vital lifeline for refugees and asylum seekers trapped in Libya. With this latest evacuation, 581 vulnerable refugees and asylum-seekers have been taken out of Libya this year, including 221 via resettlement. Currently, more than 45,200 refugees and asylum seekers are registered with UNHCR in Libya, including nearly 670 held in government-run detention centres.

Source: Libya Today November 20, 2020 10:18 UTC