Published: 19:24, June 17, 2024
Ten migrants die in Mediterranean shipwreck, German charity says
By Reuters

Migrants, mainly from sub-Saharan Africa, are stopped by Tunisian Maritime National Guard at sea during an attempt to get to Italy, near the coast of Sfax, Tunisia, April 18, 2023. (PHOTO / AP) 

ROME - Ten migrants died in the Mediterranean after their boat was flooded with water, but 51 other people aboard the vessel were rescued, a German charity said on Monday.

RESQSHIP, which operates a migrant rescue ship called Nadir, said on social media platform X it had found the 61 people on board a flooded wooden boat, with the 10 dead trapped in its lower deck.

The charity said two of those who survived were unconscious and receiving medical attention, adding that they critically needed emergency evacuation.

RESQSHIP gave no details about where or when the rescue operation took place, but according to the marinetraffic.com tracking service, the Nadir WAS off the eastern Tunisian port of Sfax on Monday.

ALSO READ: 23 Tunisian migrants missing while sailing to Italy

The United Nations has registered more than 20,000 deaths and disappearances in the central Mediterranean since 2014, making it the most dangerous migrant crossing in the world.

Earlier this month, 11 bodies were recovered from the sea off the coast of Libya.