MOGADISHU (Kaab TV) – Nearly a hundred young people, mostly from Somaliland, who were among the migrant youths returned from Libya, reported that they are struggling in Mogadishu.

The young people who filed a complaint in Mogadishu said that the United Nations Migration Agency (IOM) and the Somali Embassy in Libya had promised them financial assistance—$5,000 to be exact—upon their return. However, they reported that they are currently living in a small room provided by the IOM, with no sign of the promised money.

Yahye Abdullahi Jama, one of the youths from Somaliland, said that upon their arrival in Mogadishu, their identity cards were taken, leaving them with no one to turn to for help.

“When we were in Libya, we were told not to register in Hargeisa, but in Mogadishu. We were promised that we would be paid $5,000,” said Yaxye.

“We are still imprisoned in Libya; we are being detained at 10:00 p.m.,” he continued.

Yasin, another youth, told Kaab TV that the youths from Mogadishu have been separated, while those from Somaliland are now isolated in the city.

“And we are being discriminated against in a special way,” he said.

These young people, now in a desperate situation, regretted agreeing to return. They said they had been less than 14 km from the coast of Lampedusa, an island in the Mediterranean Sea.

They accused Somalia’s ambassador to Libya of deceiving them, making them believe there was hope in Somalia—a hope they now feel they have lost.

“The Somali ambassador belongs to the smugglers [smuggling gangs],” Yaxye said.

The Somali government and the IOM have been arranging flights for young people intercepted on the shores of Libya as they attempt to migrate to Europe.

The IOM has yet to comment on the financial promises that were made and later withdrawn.

Kaab TV has also received no response from the Somali immigration department or the Somali embassy in Libya.

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The appeal, made through the multi-agency Regional Migrant Response Plan for the Horn of Africa and Yemen framework, will address the dire humanitarian needs as well as protection risks and vulnerabilities that migrants in the region face and scale up the delivery of lifesaving and resilience-building initiatives as well as pursue the implementation of long-term sustainable solutions for migrants and host communities.

The Eastern Route is one of the busiest, most complex, and dangerous migratory routes in the world. In 2022 overall, the number of migrants who entered Djibouti almost doubled compared to the previous year. In the same year, 89 migrant deaths or disappearances were recorded along the route due to hazardous transportation, illness, harsh environmental conditions, drowning at sea, and violence. Many more deaths and disappearances go unreported.

Every year, thousands of migrants leave their countries in the Horn of Africa and move along the Eastern route towards Gulf countries. In their migration, most migrants make the dangerous crossing of the Red Sea through Bossaso in Somalia, and Djibouti’s coastal town of Obock to Yemen and further by land to Gulf countries.

“The Eastern Route is an underserved crisis easily forgotten amidst other global crises, and we must accord the migrants the support and dignity they deserve,” said IOM Director General, António Vitorino. “The Regional Migrant Response Plan was conceptualized to address the vast and complex challenges on this route and to do so in a coherent and coordinated manner.”

Mobility in the Horn of Africa, through Yemen and to the Gulf States, continues to be triggered by interconnected crises, including persistent insecurity and conflict, harsh climatic conditions, and public health emergencies, in addition to socioeconomic drivers and more traditional seasonal factors.

Funding through this appeal will address the most immediate and critical humanitarian and protection needs of migrants in vulnerable situations; support their voluntary return to their home countries in a safe and dignified manner and ensure that they reintegrate back into their communities successfully.

“The plan provides a flexible mechanism for all stakeholders to respond to evolving migration trends, and broader humanitarian and development challenges affecting migrants, host communities and the respective governments,” added the IOM Director General.

Funding through this appeal will further help stakeholders’ efforts towards addressing the drivers of irregular migration; strengthen the capacity of governments in the region on migration management; ensure coordination of efforts, and enhance inter-state and inter-regional collaboration to address the national and regional dimensions of the migration linking the Horn of Africa and Yemen.

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