At least seven immigrants from Sudan have been found dead after the vehicle broke down and left them deep in the Libyan desert.
Ebrahim Berhassan, director of Kuhula Ambulance and Emergency Services, said the vehicle was carrying 34 Sudanese citizens when it broke down from Chad across Libyan borders and on a secluded path that was often used by smugglers.
They were found in the dunes 11 days later, and they ran out of food and water, he said.
“The survivors were almost dead. They were so dehydrated that they showed signs of pain and trauma in such circumstances, and they saw the people around them die and know if they would die next,” he said.
Twenty-two people rescued, including five children, were moved to Kuhura for medical checks.
Five people are missing, but Verassan said he hopes to survive on foot in the vast desert.
Smugglers who discovered they had warned the emergency crew, Berhassan said.
Shares borders with six countries and has a long coastline along the Mediterranean, Libya is the main transport point for migrants who flee war and poverty in Africa and the Middle East, often seeking to reach Europe.
The International Migration Agency estimates approximately 787,000 migrants and refugees from various nationalities who lived in Libya as of 2024.
Last year, Kufra Ambulance Service responded to an emergency involving more than 260 Sudanese migrants found in the desert, Belhassan said.
