Italy: 41 dead in migrant shipwreck off central Mediterranean
At least 41 migrants died in a shipwreck last week in the central Mediterranean, Reuters reported on Wednesday, citing local news agency ANSA. Four survivors of the accident, who managed to reach Lampedusa Island in Italy, reportedly told rescuers that the boat carrying 45 people, including three children, capsized and sank after a few hours.
Only 4 people survived mid-sea tragedy: Reports
According to multiple reports, the four survivors—three men and a woman from Ivory Coast and Guinea—were rescued by a Maltese cargo ship and then transferred to an Italian coast guard vessel. However, there was no official word from the coast guard, and it was still unclear if the accident was linked to the two shipwrecks that the coast guard had reported on Sunday.
Tunisia recovered 11 bodies from shipwreck near Sfax
Per ANSA, the coast guard also recovered 57 survivors and two bodies after the two shipwrecks. At least one of the sunken boats had set off from Sfax in Tunisia on Thursday. Meanwhile, Tunisian authorities said on Monday that they had recovered 11 bodies from a shipwreck near Sfax on Sunday, with 44 migrants still missing from that sinking.
Migrant crisis growing in Italy
Over 90,000 migrants have arrived in Italy after crossing the Mediterranean Sea this year. The figure is nearly double that of migrants who arrived on the country's shores last year. Most of them are stopped off the coast of North Africa, and those who make it through are picked up by the Italian coast guard or charity boats and sent to reception facilities.
Mediterranean Sea is deadly, dangerous migrant route: IOM
To note, the Mediterranean crossing is considered one of the most dangerous migrant routes in the world, per the International Organization for Migration (IOM). It said that almost 28,000 people have gone missing trying to cross the sea since 2014.
