At least 53 people are dead or missing after a boat carrying migrants capsized in the Mediterranean Sea off the coast of Libya, the UN’s migration agency has reported, as outlined by The Guardian.
The International Organization for Migration said the vessel overturned north of the coastal city of Zuwara on Friday. Only two survivors, both Nigerian women, were rescued by Libyan authorities during a search and rescue operation.
According to the IOM, one of the survivors stated she had lost her husband, while the other said she lost her two babies. The agency’s teams provided both women with emergency medical care.
The incident occurred along the central Mediterranean migration route. Survivor accounts given to the IOM indicate the boat, which carried migrants and refugees of African nationalities, had departed from Al-Zawiya in Libya at about 11pm on 5 February. It reportedly capsized approximately six hours later after taking on water.
In a statement, the Geneva-based agency mourned the loss of life in what it described as another deadly incident on this route. It attributed the dangers to trafficking and smuggling networks, which it said exploit migrants travelling from north Africa to southern Europe.
The IOM stated these networks profit from dangerous crossings in unseaworthy boats and expose people to severe abuse. The agency called for stronger international cooperation to tackle the networks, alongside the creation of safe and regular migration pathways to reduce risks and save lives.
