Tunisia Dismantles Sub-saharan Migrant Camps, Forcibly Deports Some

Tunisian authorities have dismantled makeshift camps housing 7,000 sub-Saharan African migrants and begun forcibly deporting some of them, a senior official told Reuters on Saturday, as the country grapples with an unprecedented migrant crisis.

Houssem Eddine Jebabli, an official in the National Guard, told Reuters a number of migrants was arrested for violence during the ongoing operation. He said their forced repatriation began Friday night and the authorities are also seeking to voluntarily repatriate thousands more.

He said the number forcibly deported was significant, without specifying how many, and that bladed weapons, including knives and swords, were seized.

Tunisias government said about 20,000 of migrants live in tents in forests in southern towns, such as Amra and Jbeniana, after authorities prevented them from travelling across the Mediterranean.

Migrants have frequently clashed with local residents, who want them deported from their area.