Abshir Aden Ferro, a Somali businessman, has succeeded in securing the release of 400 migrants, including 50 women, who had been held captive in Libya.
Thousands of migrants, including at least 7,000 Somalis, remain trapped in the hands of traffickers and armed groups in Libya, which has become one of the most perilous transit points on the route to Europe.
In an unprecedented humanitarian initiative, Aden Ferro—himself a former soldier now based in Europe—intervened after learning of the abduction of a 25-year-old relative.
According to reports carried by Kenya’s Digital News and translated by Libya’s Al-Marsad, he traveled in early August to Tripoli and then to Tajoura, using his own resources to negotiate the release not only of his relative but also of hundreds of other Somalis. “I could not, in good conscience, leave the others behind,” he said, stressing that no ransom was paid.
The head of the Somali community in Libya described the episode as “the largest collective release of its kind” in a country where humanitarian groups estimate that more than 7,000 Somalis remain missing or detained in facilities run by armed factions.
Survivors spoke of detention conditions marked by starvation, torture, and extortion. Halima, 22, said she survived 18 months on “a piece of bread and a glass of water a day,” while Mohamed Abdullahi, 19, recalled being crammed into overcrowded cells: “You were only lucky if your family could send money.”
The United Nations has repeatedly documented widespread abuses against migrants in Libya, including torture, forced labour, and sexual exploitation. The country remains one of the most dangerous transit routes for those seeking to reach Europe.
MK/ac/sf/lb/as/APA