Teams have saved people of various nationalities from ten overcrowded boats near Tobruk

More than 400 migrants have been rescued off Libya's eastern coast this week, after they were found at risk of drowning, the Libyan Red Crescent Society announced on Thursday.

The route via the Central Mediterranean is considered one of the world's deadliest, with more than 1,300 people lost along it in 2025, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM) Missing Migrants Project.

The IOM also said earlier this week that 4,407 migrants had been intercepted and returned to Libya in 2026.

The rescue operation was carried out in coordination with the UN refugee agency, the Red Crescent reported. A total of 404 migrants of various nationalities were taken off ten overcrowded boats near the eastern city of Tobruk, about 1,600 km from the capital, Tripoli, after enduring difficult conditions that put their lives in danger.

Rescue teams were rapidly deployed to designated landing points, where migrants received immediate medical care and humanitarian assistance. Images released by the organization showed volunteers handing out food and blankets to those rescued.

Libya has become one of the main transit points for refugees from Africa and the Middle East trying to reach Europe via the Central Mediterranean. They are fleeing armed conflict, political instability, and economic hardship in countries such as Sudan and Nigeria, and parts of the Sahel.

The boats are usually overcrowded and unsafe, and many sink or capsize before reaching European waters.

In February, the IOM stated that at least 53 migrants, including two babies, had died or gone missing after a boat capsized off the coast of Libya.

"These tragedies are preventable. Urgent action is needed to protect lives and ensure safe, regular pathways on the Central Mediterranean route," the agency said in a statement on Facebook.

The UN reported that 27,116 migrants were intercepted and returned to Libya in the Central Mediterranean in 2025. "Smuggling and trafficking networks continue to profit from desperate people by sending them to sea in unseaworthy boats," the organization noted.

(RT.com)