4 yıl önce

UN: Dozens of migrants drown after boat breaks down off Libya coast

At least 74 people have drowned while only 47 were rescued by the Libyan coast guard and fishermen, and 31 bodies were retrieved as the search for the remaining victims continues.

Reuters

A still image taken from a video shows migrants at sea waiting to be rescued by Spanish search and rescue ship Open Arms during a search and rescue (SAR) operation in the Mediterranean Sea, November 11, 2020.

At least 74 migrants drowned after their Europe-bound ship broke down off the coast of Libya, the UN migration agency has said, the latest in a series of at least eight shipwrecks in the Central Mediterranean since last month.

The boat was carrying over 120 migrants, including women and children when it capsized off the coast of the Libyan port of Al Khums, said the International Organization for Migration on Thursday.

Only 47 people were rescued by the Libyan coast guard and fisherman and brought to shore.

So far 31 bodies were retrieved as the search for the remaining victims continued, added the IOM.

A shipwreck off the Libyan coast tragically claimed more than 70 lives today.

IOM reiterates that Libya is not a safe port for return and urges the EU and the international community to take urgent action to end this exploitative cycle: https://t.co/V8gJsKdFyl pic.twitter.com/VVLQfDfGz1
— IOM - UN Migration (@UNmigration) November 12, 2020

Major transit point

Smugglers often pack desperate families into ill-equipped rubber boats that stall and founder along the perilous Central Mediterranean route.

At least 20,000 people have died in those waters since 2014, according to the IOM.

“The mounting loss of life in the Mediterranean is a manifestation of the inability of States to take decisive action to redeploy much needed, dedicated Search and Rescue capacity in the deadliest sea-crossing in the world,” said Federico Soda, IOM Libya Chief of Mission.

🚨 We have long called for a change in the unworkable approach to Libya and the Mediterranean, including establishing a clear disembarkation mechanism followed by solidarity.

Thousands of people continue to pay the price for inaction at sea and on land.https://t.co/BWRRGzgzKb
— Federico Soda (@fedsoda) November 12, 2020

On Tuesday, 13 African migrants including three women and one child had drowned in a similar shipwreck off the Libyan coast.

The IOM said that it had noticed a recent surge in the number of departures from the Libyan shores, with over 780 arrivals in Italy since the beginning of October.

More than 11,000 migrants had been intercepted and returned to Libya, where they face the risk of human rights violations and detention, read the IOM statement.

“IOM maintains that Libya is not a safe port for return and reiterates its call on the international community and the European Union to take urgent and concrete action to end the cycle of return and exploitation,” added the statement.