ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Twenty-five migrants from the Kurdistan Region have been rescued in Libya and are expected to return home “soon,” Iraq’s acting ambassador to the north African country told Rudaw on Sunday.
Ahmed al-Sahhaf, the Chargé d'Affaires at the Iraqi embassy in Libya, told Rudaw that the embassy “had searched and located the 25 Kurdish migrants from the Kurdistan Region, and they are safe with us.” He added, “Soon, the procedures for their return to the Kurdistan Region will be completed.”
The Iraqi diplomat added that the Iraqi embassy, in coordination with eastern Tripoli’s Directorate of Illegal Immigration, was able to secure their release.
“All 25 individuals are from the city of Ranya,” located in the Raparin Independent Administration of the Kurdistan Region’s eastern Sulaimani province, Sahhaf confirmed.
In early July, Rudaw reported on the rising number of young people from the Raparin area using the Libya-Italy sea route to reach Europe. The dangerous path has become increasingly popular due to tighter border restrictions and longer wait times along the traditional Turkey-Greece route.
“Most migrants now go through Libya,” said Ranj Pishdari, a Europe-based migrant rights activist. “From there, they head across the Mediterranean to Italy. It’s become the preferred route despite the risks.”
Ranj Pishdari, a Europe-based migrant rights activist, then-stated that “most migrants are going through Libya,” and “from there, they head across the Mediterranean to Italy. It’s become the preferred route despite the risks.”
Meanwhile, Bakr Ali, head of the Association of Returned Refugees (ARR), explained that the Libya-Italy crossing is much shorter - taking around eight hours compared to up to 72 hours from Greece. “Smugglers charge nearly $17,000 per person,” he told Rudaw, “and a significant portion of that money is paid to Libyan militias who control the coast.”
According to Rudaw’s sources, one of the most influential smugglers in Libya is a Kurd from Raparin, known by the initials H.K. Although based in Europe, he has temporarily relocated to Libya to personally oversee the smuggling operations.
For his part, Sahhaf reaffirmed on Sunday the embassy’s commitment to locating and assisting all migrants in Libya. “From time to time, we find these migrants who come to Libya illegally,” he said.
Looking ahead, the rescued individuals “will contact their families, obtain passports and will return to the Kurdistan Region as coordination is currently under way” with the local authorities, Sahhaf explained.
He further warned that the route to Europe via Libya “is a very dangerous route. We advise young people not to take that path.”
Just last week, six other Kurdish migrants were also repatriated from Libya to the Kurdistan Region, which has witnessed repeated waves of youth migration over the past decade, largely driven by economic hardship and the pursuit of better opportunities abroad.
Ahmed Talat contributed to this report.
