TRIPOLI, Dec. 6 (Xinhua) -- The International Organization for Migration (IOM) on Thursday said 193 Nigerian illegal immigrants were voluntarily deported back to their country.
"Today, with the support of the European Union Trust Fund, 193 migrants returned home safely to Nigeria," IOM said in a statement.
The deportation is part of the voluntary return program carried out by the IOM, with an aim to arrange the return of illegal immigrants stranded in Libya to their countries of origin.
Shelters in Libya are crowded with thousands of illegal immigrants who have been rescued at sea or arrested by the Libyan security services.
Libya has become a preferred departure point for illegal immigrants hoping to cross the Mediterranean Sea into Europe due to insecurity and chaos in the North African country following the 2011 uprising that toppled former leader Muammar Gaddafi.
