First commercial flight from Libya to Italy in almost 10 years takes off

STORY: First commercial flight from Libya to Italy in almost 10 years takes off DATELINE: Oct. 1, 2023 LENGTH: 00:02:56 LOCATION: Tripoli CATEGORY: ECONOMY SHOTLIST: 1. various of the airport 2. various of passengers 3. various of the flight 4. SOUNDBITE (Arabic): MOHAMED ABDUSSALAM AL-ABELEK, Passenger STORYLINE: A Rome-bound flight took off Saturday in the Libyan capital of Tripoli, resuming direct scheduled flights between Libya and Italy after a nearly 10-year halt. Operated by Libya-based Medsky Airways, the flight took off from Tripoli's Mitiga International Airport for Rome's Leonardo da Vinci-Fiumicino International Airport. The airline offers a roundtrip flight on Saturdays and Wednesdays between Tripoli and Rome, Medsky Airways announced on its Facebook account. SOUNDBITE (Arabic): MOHAMED ABDUSSALAM AL-ABELEK, Passenger "As a resident of Rome, I used to travel to Rome through Tunisia. I thank Medsky and all the airport staff for this service and wish them good luck." Meanwhile, the

Libya arrests 541 illegal migrants

STORY: Libya arrests 541 illegal migrants DATELINE: April 25, 2022 LENGTH: 00:02:40 LOCATION: Tripoli CATEGORY: SOCIETY SHOTLIST: various of the migrantsSOUNDBITE (Arabic): ABDUSSALAM ALEWAN, Director of Tariq al-Matar reception center in Tripoli STORYLINE: Libyan authorities have arrested 541 illegal migrants in the city of Misurata, some 250 km east of the capital Tripoli, as they were attempting to cross the Mediterranean sea towards Europe. SOUNDBITE (Arabic): ABDUSSALAM ALEWAN, Director of Tariq al-Matar reception center in Tripoli "As part of the efforts to control illegal immigration, we coordinated with the Misurata Security Directorate in arresting a group of people attempting to illegally migrate through the sea from Misurata city. 541 illegal migrants were arrested at the shore as they were preparing to migrate to Europe and then taken to the Misurata Security Directorate, in coordination with the Illegal Immigration Control Department. They were taken by buses from Misurata to the Tar