Nigeria says 25,000 Nigerians held in slave camps in Libya

ABUJA, Dec. 19 (Xinhua) -- More than 25,000 Nigerians have been held in slave and sex camps in Libya, Nigeria's National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) said on Tuesday.

So far, only about 5,000 of the victims were repatriated with the assistance of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the European Union, said Julie Okah-Donli, Director General of NAPTIP.

According to the official, the recent trend, which marked the resurgence of the slave trade, was more alarming and required more attention in the world.

She said Nigeria would consistently put the issue of human trafficking at the center of global discourse at various international fora and that the country would work to strengthen national response to irregular migration.

Early December, the Nigerian government said it had identified 2,778 of its citizens languishing in detention camps in Libya.

The Nigerian government vowed to make the repatriation of its citizens a continuous exercise, as the embassy in Libya will continue to engage the Lybian government and other stakeholders in addressing the plight of Nigerian migrants in that country. Enditem