TRIPOLI, Sept. 17 -- The International Organization for Migration (IOM) on Tuesday said that 299 migrants were intercepted and returned off the coast of Libya in the past week.

"From 8 to 14 September 2024, 299 migrants were intercepted and returned to Libya," IOM said in a statement.

The migrants included 22 women and 9 children, IOM said, adding that seven bodies of migrants were recovered off the Libyan coast.

A total of 16,220 migrants have been intercepted this year, while 466 died and 655 others went missing off the coast, it said.

Since the fall of Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, the ensuing instability in Libya has prompted many migrants, primarily from Africa, to attempt perilous crossings of the Mediterranean Sea in hopes of reaching Europe.

  - Xinhua