Tragic Libyan Migrant Shipwreck Feared to Have Claimed 60 Lives, Including Nigerians

At least 61 migrants were missing and presumed dead after their boat sank off Libya’s coast, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said Saturday, in the latest such tragedy off North Africa.

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

Citing survivors, it said there were approximately 86 migrants aboard including women and children — from Nigeria, The Gambia and other African countries.

Twenty-five people were rescued and transferred to a Libyan detention centre, said the IOM.

It said the survivors were all in good condition and had received medical support from IOM staff.

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

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.

Meloni’s hard-right government has so far taken numerous measures to restrict the activities of charity ships that save people attempting the perilous crossing from North Africa.

In Libya, more than a decade of violence 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.

Her approach to tackling illegal migration won praise from British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak during a visit to Rome on Saturday.

The two leaders vowed to stop migrant boat landings on their countries’ shores and to step up efforts to combat people smugglers.