UNHCR evacuates 117 refugees to Niger
Tripoli, Libya (PANA) - The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has evacuated 177 asylum seekers from Libya to Niger, the second such evacuation flight to the West African country since the Libyan authorities lifted the ban on humanitarian flights last October.
The UNHCR said on Friday that the evacuation flight was the 30th since the emergency transit mechanism was set up in 2017.
This brings the number of refugees and asylum seekers from Libya to 3,710, including 3,255 who left Niger to a third country as part of the resettlement process.
UNHCR's head of mission in Libya, Jean-Paul Cavalieri, thanked the Libyan authorities for their support.
He said "these life-saving flights bring hope for a better future to some of the most vulnerable people who are urgently seeking safety and protection".
-0- PANA BY/JSG/BBA/MA 1Jan2022
