By the Associated Press
CAIRO — Libya's coast guard says it has intercepted some 160 Europe-bound African migrants, including dozens of children and women, in the Mediterranean Sea near its shores.
In this Wednesday, June 20, 2018 photo, released by the Libyan coast guard, African migrants who were found on a damaged rubber boat in the Mediterranean Sea and rescued by the Libyan coast guard arrive to shore, east of the capital, Tripoli, Libya. The coast guard said it rescued some 82 African migrants, including four women and two children, and recovered one body. (AP/MANILA BULLETIN)
Spokesman Ayoub Gassim says a boat carrying 158 passengers including 34 women and nine children was stopped Monday off the coast of the western town of Khoms.
Libya has emerged as a major transit point to Europe for those fleeing poverty and civil war elsewhere in Africa. Traffickers have exploited Libya's chaos following the 2011 uprising that toppled and later killed longtime ruler Moammar Gaddafi.
He says the migrants were given humanitarian and medical aid, and were taken to a refugee camp in Khoms town.
Libyan authorities have stepped up efforts to stem the flow of migrants, with European assistance.