Libya’s coast guard intercepts 64 Europe-bound migrants, days after a deadly shipwreck

Associated Press

CAIRO (AP) — Libya’s coast guard says it has intercepted dozens of Europe-bound migrants on a boat and returned them to the shore. The boat was carrying 64 migrants and was stopped Friday off the northwestern town of Sirte, said the town’s coast guard on Saturday. This came after a boat carrying 32 migrants from Egypt and Syria capsized off Libya’s eastern town of Tobruk on Wednesday, leaving at least 23 dead or missing. Libya plunged into chaos in 2011 after Moammar Gadhafi was toppled and killed. Since then, it has emerged as the dominant transit point for migrants fleeing war and poverty and seeking better lives in Europe.