At least 43 migrants drowned in a shipwreck off Tunisia as they tried to cross the Mediterranean from Libya to Italy, while another 84 were rescued, the Tunisian Red Crescent told Reuters on Saturday.
The boat had set off from Zuwara, on Libya's northwest coast, carrying migrants from Egypt, Sudan, Eritrea and Bangladesh, the humanitarian organisation said.
In recent months, several drowning incidents have occurred off the Tunisian coast, with an increase in the frequency of attempted crossings to Europe from Tunisia and Libya towards Italy as the weather has improved.
“The navy rescued 84 migrants and 43 others drowned in a boat that set off from Libya's Zuwara towards Europe,” Red Crescent official Mongi Slim said.
Hundreds of thousands of people have made the perilous Mediterranean crossing in recent years, many of them fleeing conflict and poverty in Africa and the Middle East.
Arrivals in Italy — one of the main migrant routes into Europe — had been falling in recent years, but numbers picked up again in 2021.
Almost 19,800 migrants have arrived since the beginning of the year against just over 6,700 in the same period last year, Italian interior Ministry figures show.
Newer articles:
- South Sudan: Ten years after independence, hundreds are treated for gunshot wounds each year - 06/07/2021 00:14
- ICRC humanitarian response in South Sudan: 2011 to 2021 - 06/07/2021 00:06
- U.N, African Union peacekeepers hand over 14 Darfur bases to Sudan - 05/07/2021 00:15
- South Sudan Economic Update: Economic Decline, COVID-19, and Conflict have Negative Impact on Food Insecurity and Livelihoods - 04/07/2021 18:41
- As We Celebrate America's 245th Birthday, Help South Sudan Survive Their 10th | Opinion - 04/07/2021 06:00
Older news items
- South Sudan oil refinery ready to supply the region - 03/07/2021 21:43
- Ooni, Mayardit, 195 countries pay tributes to TB Joshua as burial rites begin tomorrow - 03/07/2021 20:00
- South Sudan opens its skies to the world with the launch of a globally integrated airspace system - 03/07/2021 18:47
- City woman becomes first African female to be Olympic Table Tennis deputy referee - 03/07/2021 01:30
- Egypt, Sudan react to South Sudan’s plan for new dam on Nile - 02/07/2021 15:11
Latest news items (all categories):
- The power struggles among South Sudan’s political leaders are the direct cause of its ongoing conflict - 11/07/2026 14:03
- Celebrating Independence In The Midst Of Sorrow - 11/07/2026 13:41
- South Sudan resumes oil-backed financing - 11/07/2026 13:33
- Press statement: Strive For National Unity In Honor Of South Sudan's Independence - 10/07/2026 21:23
- Fifteen years of independence for South Sudan, but still little to celebrate - 10/07/2026 21:23
Random articles (all categories):
- IOM South Sudan Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) 2020 | Quarter 2 Report - 01/10/2020 03:39
- Arab league reiterates its solidarity with Sudan - Sudan Tribune - 03/06/2012 11:16
- Twice as many technologies, tactics and techniques used to close than open digital space in ten African countries - 02/03/2021 01:05
- South Sudan rebel leader in Ethiopia for talks - 08/05/2014 18:00
- South Sudan - CCCM Cluster: Situation Report | April 2021 - 09/06/2021 13:17
Popular articles:
- Who is the darkest person in the world, according to Guinness World Record? - 25/10/2022 02:34 - Read 147758 times
- School exam results in South Sudan show decline - 01/04/2012 17:58 - Read 27841 times
- Top 10 weakest currency exchange rates in Africa in 2023 - 19/07/2023 00:24 - Read 24931 times
- No oil in troubled waters - 25/03/2014 15:02 - Read 24251 times
- NDSU student from South Sudan receives scholarship - In-Forum - 29/09/2012 01:44 - Read 22161 times
