90 feared dead as migrant boat capsizes off Libya, most Pakistani

An estimated 90 migrants are feared to have drowned off the coast of Libya after a smuggler’s boat capsized early today, leaving three known survivors and ten bodies washed up on shore, the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) said.

Survivors told aid workers that most of the migrants on board were Pakistanis, who form a growing group heading to Italy from North Africa, IOM spokeswoman Olivia Headon said.

“They have given an estimate of 90 people who drowned during the capsize, but we still need to verify the exact number of people who lost their lives during the tragedy,” Headon, speaking from Tunis, told a Geneva news briefing.

“What has been reported to us is that it’s mostly Pakistanis who were on board the boat, but we still need to verify the nationalities and how many from what country,” she said.

Ten bodies have washed up on Libyan shores, two of them known to be Libyans and eight Pakistanis, she said.

“I believe the Libyan coastguard is looking for other survivors off the coast,” Headon added.

Read: Over 13,000 migrants repatriated from Libya this month

Another IOM spokesman, Leonard Doyle, told Reuters Television that the boat was believed to have left shore yesterday before capsizing early on Friday morning.

Earlier security officials in the western Libyan town of Zuwara said two Libyans and one Pakistani had been rescued from the boat. They said ten bodies had been recovered, mostly Pakistani, but gave no further information.

Libya is the main gateway for migrants trying to cross to Europe by sea, though numbers have dropped sharply since July as Libyan factions and authorities – under pressure from Italy and the European Union – have begun to block departures.

More than 600,000 people are believed to have made the journey from Libya to Italy over the past four years.

Prior to Friday’s incident, some 6,624 migrants are believed to have arrived in Europe by sea so far this year and a further 246 have died, according to IOM figures.