A group of African immigrants have been brutally killed by human smugglers in the western city of Sabratha, sources say.

15 illegal immigrants of African nationalities were found in a landfill inside Fanar forest near the sea with several shots in their bodies. 160 others are still missing and their fate is unknown.

The sources indicated that a brawl broke out between the immigrants and human smugglers over payment ahead of their sea journey to Europe has led to this heinous crime.      

Sabratha is one of the cities that immigrants use to cross to Europe.