Kurdistan Region completes preparations to repatriate 33 migrants held in Libya

ERBIL, Iraq — The Kurdistan Regional Government's Interior Ministry said legal and diplomatic preparations have been completed to repatriate 33 Kurdish migrants held in Libya for more than eight months. The ministry said Prime Minister Masrour Barzani issued urgent instructions to the Interior Ministry and the Department of Foreign Relations after contact with the migrants was cut off, ordering top-level efforts to locate and secure their release. The ministry said all required documents and procedures have been finalized and the migrants are expected to arrive in the Kurdistan Region within the next week. It said the 33 individuals had been held under harsh conditions and faced serious danger to their lives, and warned young people and families against illegal migration routes and human smuggling networks. According to the ministry, the regional government has so far rescued and returned 302 irregular migrants from various countries through intensive diplomatic efforts. The 33 migrants had been held for extended periods by trafficking networks after attempting to cross the Mediterranean from Libya toward Italy. The government said voluntary evacuation operations coordinated with the International Organization for Migration and other partners continue for citizens stranded in Belarus, Turkey, Greece and Libya.