604 migrants intercepted off Libyan coast in past week, says IOM

Tripoli, Nov 19 (IANS) The International Organization for Migration (IOM) said 604 migrants were intercepted and returned off the coast of Libya in the past week.

The migrants intercepted between November 10-16 include 34 women and 11 children, IOM said in a statement, adding that seven bodies of migrants were recovered while 54 others remain missing, Xinhua news agency reported.

So far this year, 20,231 migrants have been intercepted, while 515 died and 830 others went missing off the Libyan coast, it said.

Since the fall of late leader Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, the ensuing insecurity and chaos in Libya have prompted many migrants, primarily from Africa, to attempt to cross the Mediterranean Sea to reach European shores.

--IANS

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