People waiting to be evacuated from Libya gather in the check-in hall at Tripoli airport . -- PHOTO: REUTERS
NEW DELHI - GOVERNMENTS around the world struggled on Wednesday to evacuate nationals from violence-hit Libya, with Asian countries facing a 'mammoth' task of rescuing more than 150,000 low-paid workers.
Fears of a full-scale civil war in the North African state saw countries from Canada to China scramble to charter ferries and planes to secure their citizens' safety despite poor communication links and growing violence.
The logistical challenges were especially acute for Asian countries with tens of thousands of migrants trapped in Libya.
The majority of Asian expatriates are low-paid contract workers, with 60,000 Bangladeshis, 30,000 Filipinos, 23,000 Thais and 18,000 Indians among those living under the tottering regime of Muammar Gaddafi.
'This is going to be quite a mammoth operation,' India's foreign secretary Nirupama Rao told reporters.
Of the 18,000 Indians in Libya, about 3,000 are reported to be in the violence-hit city of Benghazi working in automobile companies and hospitals. -- AFP
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