Libyan security authorities have freed more than 200 migrants from what they described as a secret underground prison in the southeastern town of Kufra, uncovering what officials say were inhuman detention conditions run by a human trafficking network. Two security sources from the city told Reuters on Sunday that the migrants had been held in captivity for prolonged periods in hidden cells beneath the ground.
The sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the operation, said the prison consisted of underground cells nearly three meters deep. The facility was allegedly operated by a Libyan human trafficker, who has not yet been arrested, according to one of the sources. Some of the migrants had been imprisoned for as long as two years, enduring what authorities described as severe abuse and deprivation.
One security source characterized the discovery as “one of the most serious crimes against humanity that has been uncovered in the region,” underscoring the scale and brutality of the operation. The raid revealed multiple underground detention chambers hidden within the town, reinforcing concerns about the prevalence of clandestine trafficking networks operating beyond effective state control.
The freed migrants are from sub-Saharan Africa, mainly Somalia and Eritrea, and include women and children, the sources said. Kufra lies roughly 1,700 kilometers southeast of Tripoli, near key desert routes used by smugglers moving migrants toward Libya’s northern coast.
Libya has become a major transit hub for migrants fleeing war and poverty in Africa and the Middle East since the 2011 NATO-backed uprising that toppled Muammar Gaddafi. While some migrants are drawn by the prospect of work in Libya’s oil-based economy, the country’s fragmented security landscape has left many vulnerable to trafficking, forced labor, torture, and extortion.
The latest discovery follows a series of grim findings in eastern Libya. Last week, authorities uncovered at least 21 bodies of migrants in a mass grave, with up to 10 survivors showing signs of torture after being freed from captivity. Libya’s attorney general said on Friday that a suspect had been referred to court on charges of committing serious violations against migrants in connection with that case.
Kufra has previously been the site of similar horrors. In February last year, authorities recovered 39 bodies from approximately 55 mass graves in the area. The town is also home to tens of thousands of Sudanese refugees who fled the conflict that erupted in Sudan in 2023, further straining local resources and exposing vulnerable populations to exploitation by criminal networks.
