4 Bangladeshi migrants die in boat capsize off Libyan coast
At least four Bangladeshi migrants died after two boats carrying 95 people capsized off the Libyan coastal city of Al Khums on Thursday, the Libyan Red Crescent said on Saturday.
According to a statement posted on the organisation’s verified Facebook page, the first boat was carrying 26 migrants from Bangladesh, four of whom drowned. The second vessel was carrying 69 migrants, including two Egyptians and several Sudanese nationals, though the Red Crescent did not provide details on casualties from that boat.
Al Khums, located 118 km east of Tripoli, is a frequent departure point for migrants attempting to reach Europe.
The incident follows another tragedy reported by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) on Wednesday, when at least 42 migrants went missing and were presumed dead after a rubber boat sank near the Al Buri oilfield northwest of the Libyan coast.
Libya has become a major transit hub for migrants and refugees fleeing conflict and poverty since the collapse of Muammar Gaddafi’s government in 2011.
Images released by the Khums Red Crescent showed bodies in black plastic bags lined up on the ground, while volunteers were seen administering first aid to survivors wrapped in thermal blankets. The Red Crescent said the Libyan Coast Guard and Khums Port Security participated in the rescue effort, adding that the recovered bodies were handed over to authorities on the instructions of the city’s public prosecution.
The latest incident adds to a series of deadly accidents along Libya’s coastline. In mid-October, 61 bodies were recovered west of Tripoli. In September, the IOM reported that at least 50 people died after a vessel carrying Sudanese refugees caught fire off Libya.
Several countries, including Britain, Spain, Norway and Sierra Leone, urged Libya last week during a UN session in Geneva to close detention centres where rights groups say migrants face torture, abuse and fatal conditions.
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