Dozen dead, many missing as refugee boats sink off Tunisia

International

24-04-2022, 09:22

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INA- sources

Four boats carrying at least 120 African migrants sank off Tunisia's coast killing 12 and ten more are still missing while 98 have been rescued.

At least 12 African refugees and migrants died and another 10 were missing after four boats carrying 120 people sank off Tunisia as they tried to cross the Mediterranean to Italy, a security official told Reuters news agency.

Ali Aayari, a lieutenant colonel in the Tunisian Coast Guard, added on Saturday that 98 migrants were rescued off the coast of Sfax.

The coastline of Sfax has become a major departure point for people fleeing conflict and poverty in Africa and the Middle East and seeking a better life in Europe.

The interior ministry said this week that it had arrested more than 20,000 refugees and migrants off its coast last year. At least 15,000 reached the coast of Italy in 2021.