Geneva, Feb 28 (IANS/AKI) Refugee and migrant children and women are suffering widespread physical and sexual violence and abuse on perilous journeys from North Africa to Italy, the United Nations said Tuesday, urging action to protect these vulnerable groups from “predators”. “The Central Mediterranean from North Africa to Europe is among the world’s deadliest and most dangerous migrant routes for children and women,” said Afshan Khan, UNICEF regional director and special coordinator for the Refugee and Migrant Crisis in Europe. At the time of the survey, 256,000 migrants were recorded in Libya, including 30,803 women and 23,102 children – a third of whom were unaccompanied. He called for “a robust system of safe and legal passage for children on the move, whether refugees or migrants”. A UNICEF six-point plan to safeguard uprooted children includes keeping families together, protecting minors travelling alone, giving children in transit access to education, healthcare and other services.

Source: Libya Today February 28, 2017 18:22 UTC