Tripoli: At least seven Sudanese migrants were found dead after their vehicle broke down and left them stranded for days deep in the Libyan desert, according to an ambulance service official. The vehicle was carrying 34 Sudanese when it broke down after crossing Libya's border from Chad and onto a deserted path often used by smugglers, Ebrahim Belhassan, director of the Kufra Ambulance and Emergency Services, said. According to Nam News Network, they were discovered in the sand dunes after 11 days, having run out of food and water, he said. A smuggler who found them alerted emergency crews, Belhassan said. Libya, which shares borders with six nations and has a long coastline along the Mediterranean, is a main transit point for migrants fleeing war and poverty in Africa and the Middle East to seek better lives in Europe. The International Organization for Migration estimates around 787,000 migrants and refugees from various nationalities lived in Libya as of 2024. During last year, the Kufra ambulance servic e responded to emergencies involving more than 260 Sudanese migrants found in the desert, Belhassan said.