Mass deportation | 700 Sudanese deported to the desert

On Friday morning, the eastern Libyan "Anti-Illegal Immigration Authority" conducted a large-scale deportation operation from the city of Kufra in southeastern Libya, on the triangular border with Sudan, Chad, and Egypt. According to the authority, various units participated under the command of a general.

The mass deportation was justified on Facebook with health concerns: Some of those affected had been diagnosed with infectious diseases such as hepatitis or HIV. Others had been expelled from the country for alleged illegal entry, human smuggling, or security reasons. For others, corresponding court rulings had been made.

This wasn't the first mass deportation from Libya. In February , mass graves of refugees were discovered in the border region. At the end of May, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) documented the forced return of over 500 Sudanese from Libya's Kufra region. On Saturday, authorities reported the deportation of another 183 people—this time Egyptian nationals from Tobruk who had been apprehended without valid documents.

Libya's eastern power center is under the control of Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar. His Libyan National Army and the Government of National Stability control large parts of the east and are hostile to the UN-recognized western Libyan government in Tripoli.

The deportations are driven by massive refugee movements from Sudan; since the outbreak of the conflict in April 2023, this has affected more than 12 million people. Many initially sought protection in neighboring countries such as Chad and Egypt. Libya has become a transit country for Sudanese refugees seeking protection in Europe. In May, the UNHCR estimated that at least 311,000 Sudanese have come to Libya since the conflict began. UN authorities estimate that Sudanese now make up 43 percent of all refugees in Libya.

The region around Kufra, in particular, has become an important border crossing: An estimated 198,000 Sudanese entered Libya through this region in 2024 alone, according to the portal "Info Migrants." According to the UNHCR, most of those arriving are heading for coastal cities to attempt the dangerous Mediterranean crossing to Europe. Their situation remains precarious even without mass deportations: The UN World Food Programme has warned of hunger and food insecurity among the refugees. In Libyan reception centers, violence by staff and overcrowding are prevalent, and medical care is inadequate.

The self-organized group "Refugees in Libya" sharply criticized the deportations to the desert on Platform X. In a statement, it described the authorities' actions as a "clear violation of all humanitarian, moral, and legal standards." They stated that they had "provided no explanation as to how 700 people were transported to the desert, how the transfer process to their country took place, or which authorities received them."

"Refugees in Libya" particularly criticized the practice of "classifying displaced persons, accepting the healthy and expelling the sick." The organization demanded that the "Anti-Illegal Immigration Agency" clarify whether the deportees had even reached Sudan.