Libya's 'devastating' refugee crisis: By the numbers

Nearly 750,000 people have fled Libya by land and sea, braving dangerous routes and facing a hostile welcome if they reach foreign shores

Libyans walk through a refugee camp near Tunisia: 746,000 Libyans have fled their war-torn country, even as it threatens to become more dangerous to leave than to stay.
(Image credit: REUTERS/Zoubeir Souissi)

It has gotten so that "fleeing conflict in Libya has become almost as dangerous as staying behind to fight," says Barbara Lewis at Reuters. As Libyan migrants continue to crowd into rickety boats, sometimes in bad weather, for the trip to Italy's nearby Lampedusa Island, several ships have sunk or disappeared. And those migrants who make it aren't exactly welcomed with open arms by overwhelmed Europeans. Even more refugees have fled by land into neighboring Egypt or Tunisia. Here, a look at Libya's "devastating" refugee exodus, by the numbers:

746,000

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