Kidnapped Migrants to UK Face Ransom and Threats of Organ Theft
Over 300 young men from Iraqi Kurdistan were seized while travelling via Libya in summer 2025. A militia demanded a ransom of $5,000 per family and warned that payment would be taken “with a kidney”.
Investigators have talked to survivors and seen photos that appear to show forced organ removal. Hostages were kept in cramped cells with as many as 180 men in one room. Hunger was extreme – some families were told they could receive one loaf of bread a day only if they paid more money.
At least one hostage died. Several more remain unaccounted for. A smuggler, Noah Aaron, is serving a 10‑year jail sentence in France on related offences.
The incidents highlight how smuggling routes through Libya’s ungoverned zones allow criminal groups to grab migrants, extort ransom, and in some cases threaten or actually carry out organ theft. The Kurdistan Regional Government urges survivors to warn others of the dangers.
