Sociology

Refugee

Organised crime

Extortion

Irregular migration

Criminology

Political science

Ethnology

Chemistry

Crimes against humanity

War crime

Seekers

Humanity

Human trafficking

International law

Argument (complex analysis)

Biochemistry

Antipode

This paper contributes a conceptual and empirical reflection on the relationship between human smuggling, trafficking and kidnapping, and extortion in Libya. It is based on qualitative interview data with Eritrean asylum seekers in Italy. Different tribal regimes control separate territories in Libya, which leads to different experiences for migrants depending on which territory they enter, such as Eritreans entering in the southeast Toubou controlled territory. We put forth that the kidnapping and extortion experienced by Eritreans in Libya is neither trafficking, nor smuggling, but a crime against humanity orchestrated by an organized criminal network. The paper details this argument and discusses the implications.

Smuggling, Trafficking, and Extortion: New Conceptual and Policy Challenges on the Libyan Route to Europe