BRUSSELS (BNO NEWS) -- The European Commission on Wednesday announced that the EU Civil Protection Mechanism was activated to support the evacuation of EU citizens from Libya.

The Mechanism was activated by the Presidency of the European Council and the High Representative for Foreign Affairs of the European Union. The Commission's Monitoring and Information Centre (MIC) will oversee the process.

"Thousands of EU citizens are struggling to evacuate from Libya under extremely difficult circumstances. It is our duty to live up to this challenge of facilitating the evacuations," said Kristalina Georgieva, Commissioner responsible for Crisis Response.

The MIC notified all countries participating in the Mechanism of the possibility closer cooperation on evacuation operations at EU level. The MIC will help identifying and facilitating the deployment of assets for evacuation, including by sea, in Libya but focusing on Benghazi.

"Europeans are working in a spirit of solidarity in this unprecedented crisis to speed up the return to safety of Europeans in Libya," added Georgieva.

The European Civil Protection Mechanism facilitates cooperation in disaster response and 31 countries participate in it. Upon activation, the Mechanism ensures the coordination of assistance interventions inside and outside the EU.

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