Reports of abuse, human trafficking and even a form of modern slavery are continuously coming out of Libya as the NATO-backed government in Tripoli seems to be unable to tackle the crisis.

Thousands of Europeans protested across the continent's capitals against the staunch human rights violations going on in the North African nation.

One report, produced by CNN, showcased an alleged live slave auction where sub-Saharan Africans were being sold off for prices as low as $400.

These reports have driven outcries across the globe, prompting the French government to call an emergency United Nations Security Council session on the situation in Libya.

They also sparked protests in several European cities.

In Brussels, some of the demonstrators turned to violence and mindless destruction, vandalizing local stores and destroying both public and private property.

While the events largely remained peaceful, police forces in Brussels were forced to use water cannons to disperse groups of rioters. No injuries were reported, but the Brussels Public Prosecutor's office said officers had made 16 judicial arrests and 55 administrative arrests following the riots in the Brussels-Capital Ixelles district.

Berlin also saw similar demonstrations, albeit with no significant violent outbursts. Apparently, significant numbers of Africans holding placards also showed up to protest the ongoing situation.

Rome and Paris saw some scores of demonstrators as well gathering outside the cities' respective Libyan embassies, protesting against the government in Tripoli.

Libya has become a major bottleneck of the seemingly unending flow of people from the third world seeking to enter Europe ever since the fall of strongman Moammar Gadhafi in October 2011, who had warned against destabilizing Libya, toppling his regime and what that would imply.

The problem has only intensified since German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who is now struggling to form a new government, de-facto opened the continent's borders to the Middle East, Central Asia and Africa in 2015; a decision which while some say has saved lives, has led others to point to the thousands who have drowned in the Mediterranean Sea, and argue that the Australian model is more sensible.

Three thousand people have lost their lives at sea this year alone while attempting to hop between continents according to a statement made Friday by the United Nations agency looking into matters of immigration.

While it is easy to think about the people attempting to come over as those who have made it and those who have not, for the past few years it has been forgotten what a treacherous journey they have been through due to abuse by human traffickers in countries such as Libya, which is unable to crack down on the problem on its own.

The African Union on Friday called it like it saw it, saying that Tripoli has an obligation investigate the "slave markets."

The threats of sanctions come at a crucial time for the civil-war torn nation, which has been struggling to even provide basic utilities to many of its citizens, even in the capital.

"We are the victim of this illegal immigration crisis and not the source. Libya doesn't hold the key to ending the crisis, so the international community should help the country stop its immigration flow at the southern borders and develop detention centers for those immigrants in the country, or tackle the issues of the source countries so the immigrants can stop taking the risk," read a statement by Libya's Presidential Council released Thursday.

"The international community should not just feel sorry for such crimes but should also take some action against them, no matter where the crimes took place, knowing that such crimes exist in different African and European countries." the council said.

Colonel Gadhafi prophesized for decades that the destabilization of Libya would lead to a catastrophic mass immigration crisis. His words seem to have rang true.

"There are millions of blacks who could come to the Mediterranean to cross to France and Italy, and Libya plays a role in security in the Mediterranean," Gadhafi told France 24 in March 2011.

"People from NATO, listen to me. You're bombing a wall which stood in the way of African immigration into Europe. The wall which stopped Al-Qaida terrorists. This wall was Libya, you ruined it. You are idiots." Gadhafi had said months before being lynched and murdered by NATO-backed rebels on October 20, 2011.