(CNN) -- Desperation, sophisticated smuggling operations and the emergence of a small Italian island as a migrant destination provide the sad backdrop to Monday's tragedy on the Mediterranean Sea -- the capsizing of a boat carrying African migrants from Libya to Italy. Libyan police officers help rescued migrants off an overcrowded boat that arrived this week in Tripoli. Jean-Philippe Chauzy, spokesman for the International Organization for Migration, said Tuesday that Libya for years has been a destination for migrants from the rest of Africa. Its relatively successful economy is a magnet for people from impoverished regions, and its proximity makes it a logical jumping-off point for Europe.
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Libya has long been a destination for migrants from the rest of Africa
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Many African migrants try to find work in industries such as construction
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Others attempt to move on to Europe, with Italy a common destination
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Strict border controls often prompt migrants to take other dangerous routes
Some 75 percent of them applied for asylum, and about 50 percent of those received some form of international protection from the @placeholder authorities.