IOM will today evacuate 900 Egyptian migrants from Tunisia to Egypt
through five charter flights with another 900 due to leave
tomorrow, Tuesday 1 March.

The Organization is also evacuating a group of 361 Bangladeshi
migrants and 174 Malians from Tunisia today with more planned for
Tuesday.

A sea evacuation of about 2,000 Egyptian migrants from the port
at Djerba has also been planned but bad weather has so far hampered
efforts. IOM expects this operation to get underway in the coming
days as the weather improves.

In addition, IOM is looking to evacuate thousands of Egyptians
stranded in the Libyan port city of Benghazi by sea to Alexandria
in Egypt.

"IOM urgently needs donors to fund its initial appeal for USD 11
million launched last week as soon as possible. We are using our
reserves to provide immediate assistance, so desperately needed by
the many tens of thousands of migrants who have already fled and
many, many more still inside Libya desperately calling us for
help," says IOM Director General William Lacy Swing.

"We urge all parties in Libya to refrain from targeting migrants
who have for decades contributed to the growth and well-being of
Libyan economy and to let those who wish to leave, to do so safely
and in dignity."

More than 100,000 migrants from many nationalities have escaped
into Tunisia and Egypt, with a growing number now stranded at
Libya's borders with Egypt and Tunisia.

About 12,000 non-Tunisian migrants alone crossed the Tunisian
border at Ras Adjir on Sunday (27 February).

With the large outflows putting enormous strain on the local
infrastructure, in Tunisia in particular, it is imperative to be
able to evacuate the migrants as soon as possible.

IOM is establishing two transit centres for 800 migrants at Ras
Adjir to help ease the pressure on another centre currently being
managed by the Tunisian Red Crescent.

With very low temperatures at night and strong desert winds,
shelter as well as water and sanitation assistance is critical.

An IOM team found a group of about 600 Vietnamese migrants
without papers at the border point trying to find some element of
shelter from the elements but in the end forced to sleep in the
open. The Organization is making arrangements to evacuate this
group of migrants shortly. Although the Vietnamese migrants told
IOM another 1,000 of their compatriots were on their way, at least
5,000 Vietnamese of an estimated 10,500 in Libya are still stuck
inside the country.

In Egypt, where close to 22,000 Egyptian migrants alone are at a
reception and processing centre at the border at Salum and another
7,000 migrants stranded in a compound in no-man's land between the
two countries without papers or food or water, the situation is
also difficult.

IOM, with teams working on the border at Salum and at Marsa
Matroh further inland, has begun registration of the non-Egyptian
migrants in no-man's land in order to organize their
evacuation.

The majority of the migrants there are Bangladeshi nationals
with a first group of over 450 due to depart in the next few
days.

In coordination with the Egyptian authorities, IOM is also
providing the migrants with humanitarian assistance including
blankets, food and water.

Meanwhile, nearly 800 Nigerien migrants have been taken to
Agadez in northern Niger from IOM's reception and transit centre in
Dirkou. Another 432 Nigeriens have arrived today and will be
transferred to Agadez as soon as possible.

With the capacity of the centre fully stretched, IOM is
currently working with local authorities and the Nigerien Red Cross
to increase it in order to accommodate the new arrivals. Tents will
be set up on an adjacent plot of land. However, there is an urgent
need for food, water and sanitation assistance.

This will become even more essential as Nigerien authorities in
this northern part of the country have told IOM that there are more
than 30 trucks carrying more than 2,000 Nigeriens and other
Africans on board on Niger's border with Libya. They are expected
in Dirkou within the next 24 hours.

The migrants being taken to Agadez have told IOM that they have
escaped from Tripoli, Misrata and Sabah. They also spoke about the
thousands of Sub-Saharan Africans holed up inside their homes
without any assistance at various places including Moursouk, Sabah,
Misrata, Tripoli and Benghazi, desperately searching for vehicles
to escape the targeted violence they feel is coming their way.

IOM is regularly receiving calls and messages from migrants and
refugees inside Libya in a desperate situation.

The Organization is calling for migrants and refugees in Libya
not to be targeted and for the safe passage for all those seeking
to leave the country.

"We would urge migrants still in Libya fearing violence against
them to stay put for the moment if they are in a safe place and out
of sight," says IOM's Director of Operations, Mohammed Abdiker.

For further information, please contact:

Jean Philippe Chauzy

IOM Geneva

Tel: + 41 22 717 9361

       + 41 79 285 4366

E-mail: "mailto:pchauzy@iom.int">pchauzy@iom.int

or

Jemini Pandya

Tel: + 41 22 717 9486

       + 41 79 217 3374

E-mail: "mailto:jpandya@iom.int">jpandya@iom.int