Libyan UN Envoy Warns of More Refugees

Libyan Permanent Representative to the United Nations Ibrahim Omar Dabbashi claims that the European Union’s strong-arm approach to tackle migrant trafficking may inadvertently exacerbate the existing migrant crisis and enrich smugglers.

UNITED NATIONS (Sputnik) – The European Union’s strong-arm approach to tackle migrant trafficking may inadvertently exacerbate the existing migrant crisis and enrich smugglers, Libyan Permanent Representative to the United Nations Ibrahim Omar Dabbashi said Friday.

"We believe this option to solve the crisis can lead to an increase in the number of illegal migrants and help illegal smugglers make more money," Dabbashi said at a UN Security Council meeting on international peace and security.

The UN Security Council adopted on Friday a resolution approving an EU naval mission to intercept and seize migrant trafficker vessels in the Mediterranean.

Resolution 2240 authorizes several European warships to board, search and seize vessels suspected of trafficking migrants in international waters from Libya to Europe. The move is seen to give greater legitimacy to operation EUNAVFOR MED/Sophia, whose second phase began on Wednesday.

Dabbashi, who expressed hope Europe’s latest measure would nonetheless save lives and would not be the last effort to tackle the refugee crisis, stressed that illegal migration could be addressed by resolving conflicts and poverty in countries of origin.

EU border agency Frontex estimates that some 630,000 migrants and refugees have crossed the Mediterranean to Europe since the beginning of 2015. Almost 3,000 people are reported to have died or gone missing en route.