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More than 60 dead off Libya in latest migrant tragedy

Published by Fakinlede Tope John on December 17th, 2023.

More than 60 dead off Libya in latest migrant tragedy

A Libyan coast guardsman stands on a boat during the rescue of 147 illegal immigrants attempting to reach Europe off the coastal town of Zawiyah, 45 kilometres west of the capital Tripoli, on June 27, 2017.
More than 8,000 migrants have been rescued in waters off Libya during the past 48 hours in difficult weather conditions, Italy’s coastguard said on June 27, 2017. / AFP PHOTO / Taha JAWASHI

Around 61 migrants were missing and presumed dead after their boat sank off Libya’s coast, the International Organisation for Migration said Saturday, in the latest migrant tragedy off North Africa.

The “large number of migrants” are believed to have died because of high waves that swamped their vessel after it left Zuwara, on Libya’s northwest coast, the IOM’s Libya office said in a statement to AFP.

Citing survivors, it said there were about 86 migrants aboard.

Libya and Tunisia are principal departure points for migrants risking dangerous sea voyages in hopes of reaching Europe via Italy.

In the latest incident, most of the victims, who included women and children, were from Nigeria, Gambia, and other African countries, the IOM office said, adding that 25 people were rescued and transferred to a Libyan detention centre.

An IOM team “provided medical support,” and the survivors are all in good condition, the IOM office said.

An IOM spokesperson, Flavio Di Giacomo, wrote on X, formerly Twitter, that more than 2,250 people died this year on the central Mediterranean migrant route, a “dramatic figure that demonstrates that unfortunately not enough is being done to save lives at sea.”

The Adriana, a fishing boat loaded with 750 people en route from Libya to Italy, went down in international waters off southwest Greece on June 14.

According to survivors, the ship was carrying mainly Syrians, Pakistanis, and Egyptians. Only 104 people survived, and 82 bodies were recovered.

More than 153,000 migrants arrived in Italy this year from Tunisia and Libya, according to the United Nations refugee agency.

Italy’s far-right Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni won elections last year after vowing to stop illegal migration.

More than a decade of violence in Libya since the overthrow and killing of dictator Moamer Kadhafi in a NATO-backed uprising helped turn the country into a fertile ground for human traffickers who have been accused of abuses ranging from extortion to slavery.