Rwanda and UNHCR extend agreement to evacuate African refugees from Libya

Rwanda, the African Union Commission, and the UN Refugee Agency have extended an agreement to evacuate African refugees stranded in Libya, AFP reports. According to a joint statement the 2019 deal will be now run until December 31, 2025. Since the agreement’s inception, over 2,300 refugees and asylum seekers from countries such as Eritrea, Sudan, South Sudan, Somalia, Ethiopia, and Nigeria have been successfully evacuated. Of these, approximately 1,800 were resettled in third countries. 

At the start in 2019, Rwanda was ready to take in around 30,000 African refugees from Libya. The UNHCR will continue to provide essential services, including shelter, food, healthcare, and during their stay in Rwanda.

Libya has been mired in conflict and political instability following the 2011 NATO-backed uprising that toppled longtime dictator Moamer Kadhafi. The country remains divided between a UN recognized government based in Tripoli and a rival administration in the east backed by military strongman Khalifa Haftar.