Hundreds in Libya protest against migrants, refugees outside UN office

• Hundreds of Libyans protested outside UNHCR in Tripoli on June 4, blaming migrants for social and economic problems and demanding their departure.
• Protesters accused the UN refugee agency of trying to settle migrants in Libya; this was denied by the acting foreign minister.
• Libya, a transit route, hosts over 900,000 migrants. The UN warned against spreading misinformation targeting groups amid rising anti-migrant sentiment.

TRIPOLI - Hundreds of Libyans gathered outside the UN refugee agency headquarters in Tripoli on June 4 to protest against irregular migrants and refugees they say should leave Libya.

Demonstrators chanted “Libya belongs to Libyans” among other chants and called for the closure of the UNHCR headquarters in the capital.

They accused the UN agency of seeking to settle irregular migrants in the North African country.

Protesters were seen holding signs reading: “Our love for our country is not racism” and “Libya is not the world’s garbage bin”.

Libya is a key departure point for irregular migrants seeking to reach Europe by crossing the Mediterranean.

As of mid-2024, the International Organisation for Migration estimated that around 900,000 migrants and refugees were living in Libya.

Many of them are Sudanese refugees who have fled war in their home country.

The UN mission in Libya on June 1 warned against a “renewed spread of misinformation, disinformation, and inflammatory rhetoric” which it said was “targeting individuals or specific groups”.

The mission called on authorities to “address acts of incitement and the dissemination of harmful false information that may threaten public order, social cohesion, or the rights and dignity of individuals”. AFP