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SDC observes fewer Libyan refugees at borders

Swiss aid officials say there have been fewer refugees at Libya’s borders to Egypt and Tunisia following the air strikes in the country.

This content was published on March 22, 2011
swissinfo.ch and agencies

Allied forces have been carrying out a third night of air attacks in Libya in a United Nations-mandated campaign to enforce a no-fly zone and protect civilians from Libyan leader Moammar Gaddafi's forces.

“The Allies’ air strikes have lead to some relief,” Toni Frisch, deputy director-general of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), told Swiss public radio.

Frisch said he hoped that the expected flood of refugees towards Egypt would not materialise, although there were still grave humanitarian problems in Libya.

The SDC has two teams stationed at the frontiers who are looking after people fleeing Libya, helping with the water supply and delivering medical help and supplies.

Frisch hopes that the SDC will soon be able to open an office in Benghazi, in the east of Libya, to help people in the besieged city.

The Geneva-based International Organization for Migration (IOM) said on Tuesday that almost 4,900 Sub-Saharan Africans had arrived in Niger from Libya in recent days and added that 328,000 people had fled Libya to neighbouring countries in the past month.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has reported stable numbers at the border with Egypt.

In compliance with the JTI standards

In compliance with the JTI standards

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