Usually the bodies wash ashore after the flimsy vessels the migrants board in a bid to reach Europe capsize in the Mediterranean. The traffickers opened fire on the beach after the migrants refused to board their boat due to bad weather. The killings marked a new low for Libya, a key departure point for migration to Europe. The IOM estimates 521 migrants have died crossing the Mediterranean so far this year, most of whom set sail from Libya. Libya's key position in the people-smuggling chain stretching across sub-Saharan Africa has long been a headache for the EU.

Source: Libya Today March 11, 2017 02:32 UTC