EUROPE-MIGRANTS/LIBYA Boat packed with migrants sinks off Libya; up to 200 feared dead

Record ID: 142176

  • Title: EUROPE-MIGRANTS/LIBYA Boat packed with migrants sinks off Libya; up to 200 feared dead
  • Date: 28th August 2015
  • Summary: ***WARNING CONTAINS FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY*** VARIOUS OF BODY TRAPPED IN BOAT BODY BEING PULLED TO WHARF WITH POLE PEOPLE RETRIEVING BODY OUT OF THE WATER BODY BEING LIFTED INTO BODY BAG BODY LYING ON THE WHARF BODY BEING LIFTED INTO BODY BAG VARIOUS OF BODIES BEING PLACED INTO BODY BAGS BODY LYING ON THE WHARF VARIOUS OF BODIES BEING PLACED INTO ORANGE BODY BAGS
  • Embargoed: 12th September 2015 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Libya
  • Country: Libya
  • Topics: General
  • Reuters ID: LVA6ZDGSRKMFIMLBIYWFDEXYRQ3T
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: EDITORS PLEASE NOTE: THIS EDIT CONTAIN GRAPHIC IMAGES
    A boat packed with mainly African migrants bound for Italy sank off the Libyan coast on Thursday (August 27) and officials said up to 200 might have died.
    A security official in the western town of Zuwara, from where the overcrowded boat had set off, said there had around 400 people on board. Many appeared to have been trapped in the hold when it capsized.
    By late in the evening, the Libyan coast guard rescued around 201, of which 147 were brought to a detention facility for illegal migrants in Sabratha, west of Tripoli, the official said, asking not to be named.
    Another local official and a journalist based in Zuwara confirmed the sinking but also had no information on casualties.
    The migrants on board had been from sub-Saharan Africa, Pakistan, Syria, Morocco and Bangladesh, the security official said.
    One Syrian refugee rescued from the boat, Ayman Tallaal, told Reuters he knew the trip was dangerous, but felt he had no choice.
    "We are immigrating and of course, illegally, it's known, and we sank in the sea. The boat was in bad condition and people died with us. The Libyan's saved us, may God bless them," he said.
    "We have been forced into this route, it's called the route of death - it's now called the grave of the Mediterranean sea," he added.
    The Italian coast guard, which has been coordinating rescue operations with the European Union off the Libyan coast, could not immediately confirm a sinking.
    However a spokesperson for the Red Crescent told Reuters 66 people had died in the incident.
    "Today we got news that there was an illegal migration on the shores of the city of Zuwara. Our teams have rescued 198 individuals of various nationalities and 66 people have died, of different nationalities, till now," said Khamis Bin Omar, spokesman for the Red Crescent.
    Libya's coast guard has very limited capabilities, relying on small inflatables, tug boats and fishing vessels.
    Zuwara, Libya's most western town located near the Tunisian border, is a major launchpad for smugglers shipping migrants to Italy.
    Libya has turned into a transit route for migrants fleeing conflict and poverty to make it to Europe. Cross-border smuggler networks exploit the country's lawlessness and chaos to bring Syrians into Libya via Egypt or nationals of sub-Saharan countries via Niger, Sudan and Chad.
    More than 2,300 people have died this year in attempts to reach Europe by boat, compared with 3,279 during the whole of last year, according to the International Organisation for Migration.
    As many as 50 refugees were found dead in a parked lorry in Austria near the Hungarian border on Thursday, and German Chancellor Angela Merkel said the discovery had shaken European leaders discussing the migrant crisis at a Balkans summit.
    Libya has been struggling to cope with an influx of migrants, putting them in overcrowded makeshift detention facilities such as schools or military barracks where they live in poor conditions lacking medical care.
    The North African country used to deport migrants it caught but with fighting between armed groups having cut off land border crossings to Niger, Algeria and Chad, many stay months or years in detention facilities.
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