2021-02-15

TRIPOLI - How much do illegal immigrants suffer from smuggling networks? How do the illegal immigrants get in contact with the smugglers? What is the role of the international community in curbing the spread of this business? Investigative journalist Mahmoud Elsobky searched for answers to these questions and travelled to Libya, Tunisia, France, Germany and Mauritania. There he met with victims of illegal immigration and smugglers.

"I want to be somewhere out of Libya where I can enjoy my freedom’’ said Yassin, a Sudanese victim of illegal immigration held in Libya. ‘’ I was kept by Jaber for months who used to rape me. Then I became pregnant, then he sold me to Abdel Yassine who is ISIS member who used to rape me too. I had to pay 14.500 USD to the smugglers’’ said to me an Eritrean victim who faced rape and torture under the hands of smugglers in Libya.

Libya is a torture factory for all the illegal immigrants, the Libyans have no mercy with them. They are considered as business only to profit from them through selling them.

‘’People are abused when they arrive in Libya, they try to escape and they're sent back to the same abuse, in different camps maybe but in the same bad conditions’’ says Sara Prestianni, Programme Officer – Migration and Asylum, EURO MED Rights.

Team members

Mahmoud Elsobky

Mahmoud Elsobky is an investigative reporter and documentary filmmaker Investigative Reporter @alhurranews based in Washington.

Mahmoud Elsobky
Supported
€ 15.000 allocated on 15/11/2018.
ID
FPD/2018/1548

TELEVISION/ONLINE

The Route, Al Araby, 15/02/2021.

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