At least 29 people from sub-Saharan Africa died in a shipwreck over the weekend off the Tunisian coast as they attempted to cross the Mediterranean Sea to Italy, the Tunisian National Guard said on Sunday.
The sad figure is the latest in a string of migrant boat sinking, the victims of which often paid off smugglers who organized dangerous crossings on seagoing vessels, including large inflatable boats.
Boats capsize or sink almost every week. According to Human Rights Watch, more than 1,200 people died trying to cross the Mediterranean Sea last year.
Tunisian fishermen recovered 19 bodies, National Guard spokesman Houssameddine Jebabli said. He said the Coast Guard also recovered eight bodies Saturday night and rescued 11 survivors who were aboard the sinking boat. Two other bodies were found in the waters off the Tunisian port of Sfax, he said.
It wasn’t immediately clear how many other people might have been on board the sunken boats.
A Tunisian NGO tracking migrant issues said five boats had sunk off Sfax in the past two days and 67 people remained unidentified.
People fleeing conflict or poverty regularly take boats to Europe from the Tunisian coast, although the central Mediterranean is the world’s most dangerous migration route, according to the International Organization for Migration. Many are from sub-Saharan Africa.
(With inputs from agencies)
