Britain rescues 150 more from Libya desert camps

Three British military aircraft yesterday rescued a further 150 foreign nationals stranded at remote camps in the Libyan desert, Britain’s Defence Secretary said.

Two Royal Air Force C130 Hercules transport planes involved in the rescue later landed in Malta after picking up civilians from multiple locations, with the third expected to land soon after, said Defence Secretary Liam Fox.

“Three RAF C130 Hercules aircraft have successfully evacuated around a further 150 civilians from multiple locations in the eastern Libyan desert,” Mr Fox said in a Foreign Office statement.

“The aircraft have picked up civilians from a number of nations including Britain,” he added.

Mr Fox also confirmed that the British frigate HMS Cumberland had set sail for Malta after returning to Benghazi to evacuate around 200 civilians, 50 of whom were British.

The military operation comes a day after a similarly daring mission in which 150 foreign nationals were plucked out of desert camps in the strife-torn nation by two RAF C130 Hercules aircraft.

The first wave of those rescued on Saturday arrived at London’s Gatwick airport from Malta yesterday and expressed their gratitude to the British forces.

“They were magic people, perhaps the best in the world,” Mike O’Donoghue, a 62-year-old oil worker, told the BBC. “We owe our lives to them perhaps, they are the best in the world and they make it look so easy.

“When we got on the plane there were two locals attacking the tyres with machetes and the special forces told them to stop.

“Fortunately someone tackled them and brought these guys down but they were in a very difficult situation,” he added.

Of the 116 passengers on board the Boeing 747 jet, 89 were Britons.

One of them, Arthur Piper, from Lancashire in northern England, described the situation in the desert camps. “There were a few marauding gangs but they affected the contract camps more,” he told the Press Association.

“The local people were taking control of a few areas, usually airports, so that was excellent.”

Fellow British oil worker, 34-year-old Paul Powell, explained how the operation unfolded.

“Yesterday morning we were told that we were going to get an army convoy to pick us up and take us through the desert to a secret location,” he told PA.

“We got told that there was a plane and then go. It went smoothly.

“They were absolutely brilliant,” Piper said of the special forces. “But we have also got to thank the Libyan people and those left behind.”

The British government came under fire last week after its mission to bring home stranded nationals got off to a slow start when its first plane left London over nine hours late due to a technical fault.

Before yesterday’s mission, the Foreign Office said there were at least 300 British nationals left in Libya. These were mainly in the desert camps where food and drink supplies are dwindling and the threat of looting remains high.

It also confirmed another British military vessel, the HMS York, was still in the region and was “ready to assist as required”.