Libya says 8 migrants suffocated inside shipping container

BENGHAZI, Libya – Libya says at least eight people, mainly children, died of suffocation inside a shipping container crammed with migrants in the western coastal city of Zuwara.

The city’s security authorities said on Facebook on Monday that the deceased — six children, a woman and a young man — were among around 100 migrants packed into the locked container for a long time.

They say the other migrants, who are of African, Arab and Pakistani nationalities, were taken to local hospital for treatment.

It’s the latest migrant tragedy in Libya, where human trafficking has thrived amid lawlessness since the 2011 uprising that toppled and killed longtime dictator Moammar Gadhafi.

Rival governments based in eastern and western Libya rely on militias to maintain order. However, some militias have become involved in human trafficking.