TRIPOLI, April 16 (Xinhua) -- The International Organization for Migration (IOM) on Tuesday said that 584 migrants were rescued off the coast of Libya in the past week.

From April 7 to 13, 584 migrants were intercepted and returned to Libya, IOM said in a statement.

The rescued migrants include 54 women and 25 children, IOM said, adding that six dead bodies of illegal migrants were retrieved.

So far this year, a total of 4,942 illegal migrants have been rescued, while 143 died and 271 others went missing off the Libyan coast.

Because of the insecurity and chaos in the country since the fall of late leader Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, many migrants, mostly Africans, chose to cross the Mediterranean Sea to European shores from Libya. Enditem

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