41 dead after migrant boat capsizes near Italian island of Lampedusa, reports say
Around 2,000 people have died this year trying to make the Mediterranean crossing, as Carl Dinnen reports
Forty-one people are believed dead after a migrant boat capsized off the Italian island of Lampedusa, according to local media reports.
Italian state RAI television reported that four survivors were rescued and brought to land on Wednesday.
The survivors reported having left Sfax, Tunisia, on a metal boat with a total of 45 people on Aug. 3.
About six hours into their voyage, a huge wave overturned the vessel, RAI state television reported.
The Red Cross said in a statement that the four survived using inner tubes and managed to climb onto another empty vessel nearby.
Photos released by the Sea-Watch humanitarian rescue group taken by its monitoring aircraft showed the four survivors waving for help from a boat.
The four were first rescued by the Maltese-flagged bulk carrier Rimona in the Straits of Sicily, according to RAI and ANSA news agency.
They were then transferred to the Italian coast guard, which brought them to the Sicilian island of Lampedusa.
The island, which is closer to Africa than the Italian mainland, is a frequent destination for migrant smugglers and has seen its migrant holding center repeatedly overcrowded with new arrivals this summer.
Alessandra Filograno, a spokeswoman for the Italian Red Cross, confirmed that the four survivors were two men, a woman, and an unaccompanied minor.
Neither ANSA nor RAI provided attribution for the information but reported the four survivors - who hailed from Ivory Coast and Guinea - as saying that 41 people died, including three children.
There have been numerous shipwrecks of smugglers’ boats leaving from Tunisia bound for Italy so far this summer.
According to the Interior Ministry, more than 93,000 migrants have arrived in Italy so far this year, more than twice the 45,000 who arrived during the same period in 2022.
The nationalities of the majority of those arriving are believed to be from Guinea, the Ivory Coast, Egypt and Tunisia.
Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni, whose right-wing government includes the anti-migrant League party, has galvanised the European Union to join it in efforts to coax Tunisia to crack down on smuggling operations, but the boats continue to set off.
Want a quick and expert briefing on the biggest news stories? Listen to our latest podcasts to find out What You Need To Know...