Rabat – Seven Moroccans have been counted among the dead from last week’s air strike against a migrant center in Tajoura, 11 km east of Tripoli, according to a statement from the Moroccan Consulate General in Tunis released on Saturday, July 6.
A further 8 were injured and 3 more are missing, the statement added.
Contacts with the Libyan authorities in Tripoli and the Libyan diplomatic mission in Rabat provided a cross-section of information and an initial preliminary assessment of the 18 Moroccans present in the center during the air strike, said the Consulate.
“Given the volatility of the situation on the ground and the scarcity of definitive information, the situation is still unfolding,” it added.
The Moroccan consulate in Libya said it had made contact with eight wounded to ensure their health and that the process of identifying of the dead is underway so they can be repatriated to Morocco and handed over to the families.
It added that he is cooperating with the Libyan authorities to ensure those injured are evacuated from Libya as soon as possible.
The devastating air raid, which the Peace and Security Council of the African Union (AU) has described as a “savage attack,” left more than 50 migrants dead, including children, and 130 more wounded.
The UN recognized Government of National Accord in Tripoli blamed renegade military commander Khalifa Haftar and his forces for the attack. Hafter launched an offensive to take control of Tripoli in early April.
However, Haftar’s self-declared Libyan National Army denied responsibility. Earlier this week, it had announced its intention to start bombing targets in Tripoli after “traditional means” of war had been exhausted.
The AU Council has formed an investigation committee into the air raid, and the results of the investigation will be submitted to the council by September 30. The council also demanded that all those behind the attack be brought to justice without delay, urging Libyan authorities and other stakeholders to cooperate.
The UN’s refugee agency (UNHCR) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) also called for an investigation, and the UN’s special envoy to Libya, Ghassan Salame, said the attack “could clearly constitute a war crime.”
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