Libyan authorities freed 263 African migrants on Wednesday who had been held by a human trafficking gang in Ijkhara, eastern Libya, with their captors demanding ransom from their families.

Two members of the gang were arrested, including the owner of the farm used as a detention site, while efforts to track down the remaining suspects continue.

The migrants, originating from Eritrea, Somalia, and Ethiopia, had been held for up to eight months, with the traffickers demanding ransoms ranging from $10,000 to $17,000 from their families.