Fourteen individuals, including 12 Syrian migrants have died in Algeria’s southern desert province of Illizi, with five more individuals still missing, international media reported.
Bassem Farroukh, the head of irregular migration at the Syrian embassy, said that “the victims had arrived from Libya on Tuesday, but were reported missing until their bodies were discovered on Saturday after they got lost in the desert.”
The Search and Rescue Association, an NGO specializing in desert rescues, located the deceased migrants. Among them were two Algerians and 12 Syrians, including a 10-year-old child and a 16-year-old.
Farroukh blamed the Libyan authorities, accusing them of “forcibly expelling the migrants and compelling them to seek refuge in Algeria.” He also expressed concern that “more Syrians could face similar perilous journeys, potentially leading to further tragedies.”
“We will likely see more Syrians leaving Libya in similar conditions towards Algeria, and unfortunately, we must brace ourselves for more disasters,” Farroukh cautioned.
Search efforts are ongoing to locate the remaining five individuals who are still missing in the harsh desert terrain of southern Algeria.
In 2016, 22 Syrians became stranded in the Algerian desert after crossing into the country from neighbouring Niger, but were eventually rescued by the Algerian army.
Numerous Syrians, along with irregular migrants from various countries, travel to North Africa with aspirations of undertaking the perilous Mediterranean sea journey to Western Europe.
Syria continues to face the world’s most severe displacement crisis, with 13.8 million people forcibly displaced both within and outside its borders, according to UNHCR.