The Libyan National Army has offered the UK help to tackle the soaring illegal migration figures as the “crisis starts in Libya”. The army said they are eager to detain and deport migrants before they reach the English Channel, as Libyan beaches are a common departure point for those attempting to cross the Mediterranean.
Military chiefs in the Libyan city of Benghazi explained they wish to “cooperate with the UK” as their country is a key transit route for migrants from Africa. Major General Khaled Al-Sreir, the deputy chief of tackling illegal immigration, told The Telegraph that they are “the first point of contact”. He sid: “We are also the ones who are trying to stop the problem, with almost no international help. We don’t need money – what we need is an exchange of experiences and scenarios.”
The Libyan National Army’s current efforts to stop the crisis are limited by long-standing UN sanctions, which limits their access to key resources.
The military chief added that they are “not the destination” but the “people coming through Libya dream of crossing the ocean” to the UK, as well as other European countries.
He said that Africans have been made increasingly aware of the “attractive” lifestyle given to those entering Britain illegally which results in opportunists making the perilous journey.
“We have been following what’s going on in the UK lately, and are fully aware of how angry people are,” he said.
“Yet countries like the UK are effectively advertising themselves as an attractive destination.
“When an illegal immigrant makes it from Sudan to the UK, and is put in a hotel, getting everything for free, what do you think he does? He contacts his friends and neighbours, and says, ‘Look what I have here. Why don’t you come too?’”
Libya is currently grappling with more than 800,000 illegal immigrants – more than 10% of the country’s entire population.
A Home Office spokesman told The Telegraph: “We will do whatever it takes to secure our borders and dismantle the people-smuggling networks that have taken root around them in recent years.
“As part of this Government’s commitment to strengthening investigative cooperation with authorities in key transit countries, the National Crime Agency, working alongside Libyan counterparts, has arrested suspected smugglers believed to have been involved in the movement of thousands of migrants into Europe.”