Libya captured 300 Iraqi migrants on their way to the UK and informed them that they would need to undergo kidney removal

More than 300 Kurdish migrants were abducted in Libya, subjected to torture, and faced threats of organ removal as part of a ransom operation.

Last summer, over 300 migrants trying to reach the United Kingdom were subjected to kidnapping, torture, and threats of forced organ removal by a militia in Libya. This incident stands out as one of the most alarming cases of migrant abuse recorded along the Mediterranean route.

The victims, all young men from Iraqi Kurdistan, were captured while passing through Libya and were kept in what survivors characterized as overcrowded and inhumane detention conditions. The families were compelled to meet ransom demands of $5,000 (£3,700) for each individual, as captors threatened that non-payment would lead to the harvesting of organs.

Investigators who have interviewed released hostages and examined photo and video evidence suggest that there may have been instances of forced medical procedures, though this has not been independently confirmed.

Testimonies from former captives reveal that the militia holding the migrants demanded payment from their families, asserting that a prior smuggling agreement had not been fulfilled by an Iraqi Kurdish trafficker involved in organizing the journey.

The armed group reportedly cautioned families that failure to make payment swiftly would result in recovery “with a kidney.”

Some of the Libyan captors sent troubling images and videos to families depicting the detainees in captivity. In a widely shared video, a young man is informed that he is being taken to a doctor for the removal of a kidney.

A consultant who later reviewed one of the images informed investigators that the visible scars appeared to be consistent with surgical incisions typically used in kidney operations, although there is no confirmation that organ removal took place.

The journeys of the migrants were said to be orchestrated by smuggling networks based in Iraqi Kurdistan, which included a trafficker known as Noah Aaron, currently serving a 10-year prison sentence in France for unrelated money laundering and smuggling crimes.

Aaron and the Libyan militia are thought to have collaborated in the past. Both are reported to have their origins in Ranya, located in Iraqi Kurdistan, a region characterized in a Chatham House report as “riddled with active smuggling networks.”

Investigators report that the relationship among the smugglers deteriorated due to payment disputes, leading to the hostage-taking of migrants already present in Libya.

Experts indicate that the crisis illustrates the collapse of governance in Libya, an important transit nation for migrants traveling to Europe.

Anthony Dunkerley, a United Nations adviser who has investigated human trafficking in Libya, characterized the country as experiencing a significant absence of effective governance. He cautioned that rival militias dominate extensive areas of the territory and work in conjunction with smuggling networks.

In this setting, migrants are frequently transported through secured facilities where they are held and exploited for ransom.

In February, families of some of the victims approached investigators speaking in Ranya. One father recounted that his son was among those detained and detailed how the smuggling network demanded thousands of dollars to arrange the journey from Iraqi Kurdistan, traversing North Africa and crossing the Mediterranean.

He mentioned that he ultimately paid the ransom, and his son was one of the 110 hostages who were later flown back to Iraq on a government-organized repatriation flight in January.

He presented investigators with a photograph that he claims was sent by his son during his captivity, depicting a raw scar that he suspects may have been caused by a forced organ removal.

Soon after, numerous other families stepped forward with comparable stories and photographs.

One 16-year-old survivor recounted being confined in a cell alongside 178 others.

“We didn’t see the Sun for six months,” he remarked.

He noted that the conditions were so confined that prisoners had to sleep in an upright position, with all detainees sharing a single toilet. “Those who took too long would face punishment,” he stated.

Another released hostage reported being tortured, including having his leg burned, and displayed visible scars to investigators.

Survivors reported that food consisted of “one piece of bread per day” and was only given if families paid extra money.

At least one hostage has been confirmed dead, while the total number still held captive remains uncertain.

While some families managed to secure release by meeting ransom demands, Kurdish authorities are concerned that others may have fallen victim to organ harvesting, although this has not been independently verified.

Investigators report that kidnapping for ransom along Libya’s migration routes is extensively documented, yet the magnitude and purported brutality of this particular case are notably exceptional.

Criminal networks exploit Libya’s fragmented security landscape to operate with relative impunity.

Despite numerous warnings and recorded instances of abuse, authorities indicate that migration patterns from Iraqi Kurdistan to Europe persist.

Hemn Merany, a senior official at the Kurdistan Regional Government’s Ministry of the Interior, stated that returned victims are being urged to share their experiences publicly in order to dissuade others.

He shared the story of a father whose son passed away in Libya after a suspected forced organ removal. At the funeral in Ranya, he learned that two of the boy’s cousins had already departed for Europe.

“The unfortunate aspect of this industry is that we fail to learn,” Merany stated.