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In a major move aimed at choking off a primary transit corridor to Europe, authorities in divided Libya’s eastern-based government have issued a sweeping ban on citizens entering from four prominent East and Northeast African countries.
The emergency decree, implemented by the Benghazi-based administration under Prime Minister Osama Hamad, completely blocks citizens from Sudan, Eritrea, Ethiopia, and Somalia from entering the country through all land, sea, and air ports.
The Scope of the Ban
Eastern government officials publicly stated the measure is a necessary step to “reorganize and regulate” foreign arrivals. However, international observers view the decree as a direct policy to stem the immense wave of Sub-Saharan migrants utilizing Libya’s vast coastlines to launch boats toward European shores.
The administration, which is heavily backed by military commander Khalifa Haftar and controls the eastern and parts of southern Libya, has carved out strict limits for who can cross:
- Total Ban: General citizens, asylum seekers, and undocumented travelers from the four designated countries.
- Exemptions: Accredited diplomats, consular staff, and their immediate families.
- Permitted Labor: Professionals in the education, medical, and allied healthcare sectors, provided they hold valid employment contracts and explicit government approvals.
A Dangerous Gateway and Rising Local Hostility
Libya has been a focal point of global migration since the NATO-backed overthrow of long-time dictator Moammar Gadhafi in 2011. The resulting vacuum split the country into rival factions: the internationally recognized Government of National Unity in the west (Tripoli) and the parallel administration in the east (Benghazi). Taking advantage of this administrative fracture, human smuggling networks have flourished.
According to United Nations data, more than 900,000 migrants and refugees are currently inside Libya, with those fleeing the brutal civil war in neighboring Sudan making up the single largest demographic.
The ban comes amid mounting domestic tensions. Over the past few months, both eastern and western authorities have faced intense internal pressure from local populations pushing back against refugee resettlements. This has triggered massive, highly coordinated crackdowns. Amnesty International reports that thousands of Black Sub-Saharan migrants have been arbitrarily swept up in mass arrests, facing restricted movement, verbal and physical abuse, and summary deportations.
For those who evade the authorities and try to cross the Mediterranean, the risks are often fatal; just last week, a migrant vessel capsized off the coast of Tobruk, claiming at least 26 lives. Meanwhile, those intercepted at sea by coast guards are routinely sent back to government-run detention centers. U.N.-commissioned investigators have repeatedly warned that conditions in these facilities are deeply harrowing, citing documented patterns of forced labor, torture, and extortion.
