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Illegal migrants, who were rescued by the Libyan coastguard in the Mediterranean Sea off the Libyan coast, arrive at the naval base in the capital Tripoli on May 6, 2017. Photo: MAHMUD TURKIA / AFP

TRIPOLI - Gunmen mugged 129 migrants on a rubber dinghy headed for Europe and also stole the craft's motor, abandoning them off the Libyan coast, Libya's navy said Saturday.

Navy spokesman General Ayoub Qassem said the gunmen in a speedboat chased the dinghy on Friday, boarded around five nautical miles off the Libyan town of Zuwara and stole the migrants' possessions.

READ:Libya warns EU over migrant operation plan

The migrants from sub-Saharan Africa, including 27 women and two children, were stranded at sea for several hours before being rescued by Libyan coastguard alerted by a local fisherman, he told AFP.

In the first three months of 2017, more than 24,000 migrants arrived in Italy after making the perilous crossing from Libya, up from 18,000 in the first quarter of last year, according to the UN refugee agency UNHCR.

AFP

17 April 2017

Rescue workers are battling to save as many as 1,800 migrants stranded on boats off the coast of Libya

31 August 2015

At least 37 people attempting to migrate to Europe have drown off Libya's coast, officials said on Monday.

23 June 2015

Forces from Libya's internationally recognised government have warned European countries that vessels entering Libyan waters without permission would be targeted by air strikes.

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129 migrants mugged, stranded off Libya sea - eNCA