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Libya Force Arrests Gang Suspected of Torturing Migrants
[AnNahar] An gang loyal to Libya's national unity government said Wednesday it had locked away
Yez got nuttin' on me, coppers! Nuttin'!
 a gang accused of kidnapping and torturing Sudanese migrants colonists near the northern city of Sirte.

The gang, made up of "five Libyans and one Paleostinian... had tortured eight migrants colonists," said the Sirte Security and Protection Force, one of several that took part in the unity government's battle to oust the Islamic State
...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not really Moslems....
 group from Sirte last year.

The migrants colonists are being treated at the Ibn Sina Hospital in Sirte, 450 kilometers (280 miles) east of Tripoli
...a confusing city, one end of which is located in Lebanon and the other end of which is the capital of Libya. Its chief distinction is being mentioned in the Marine Hymn...
, it said.

The arrests took place in Qaddahiya, a village south of Sirte, "after the publication of a video on social media showing scenes of African migrants colonists undergoing unbearable torture", it said.

The video shows the migrants colonists being severely burned by their captors, who demand ransoms from their families.

The eight kidnapped migrants colonists were released, the pro-government force said.

Libya has long been a transit hub for migrants colonists seeking a better life in Europe, but people smugglers have stepped up their lucrative business in the chaos since the 2011 revolution.

Libyan authorities have come under fire over migrant abuses since the airing late last year by CNN of footage showing a slave market in the North African country.

Last year alone, 3,116 people died attempting the crossing, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), including 2,833 from Libya.

But there has been a sharp drop in crossing attempts since the summer of 2017 following efforts by Italia to discourage migrants colonists from trying to make the journey.
Posted by: trailing wife 2018-01-25
http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=506536