They were among 49 migrants and refugees aboard a rubber
boat that departed from Zuwara in northwest Libya around 3am
on 3 November, the International Organization for Migration
(IOM) said
on Wednesday, citing survivors.
The vessel capsized
roughly six hours later after high waves caused the engine
to fail. All passengers, 47 men and two women, were thrown
overboard.
Adrift at sea
The boat drifted for
six days before Libyan authorities rescued seven men –
four from Sudan, two from Nigeria and one from Cameroon –
on 8 November.
The missing passengers include 29 from
Sudan, eight from Somalia, three from Cameroon, and two from
Nigeria.
“IOM’s team provided the survivors with
emergency medical care, water, and food upon arrival at the
disembarkation point in coordination with relevant
authorities,” the agency said in a
statement.
Cooperation and safe migration
The
tragic event comes just weeks after other deadly incidents
off Surman, Libya, and the island of Lampedusain southern
Italy.
Latest data from IOM’s Missing
Migrants Project reveals that the death toll in the
Central Mediterranean has already surpassed 1,000 this year,
as people attempt the treacherous sea journey to
Europe.
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“With this latest shipwreck, the total has
risen even further, reinforcing the urgent need for
strengthened regional cooperation, expanded safe and regular
migration pathways, and more effective search and rescue
operations to prevent further loss of life,” the statement
concluded.
IOM upholds that humane and orderly
migration benefits both “people on the move” and society
as a whole.
Deadliest migration route
The
Missing Migrants Project was established in 2014. Since
then, more than 25,600 people have died or disappeared in
the Central Mediterranean, which spans from North Africa to
Italy.
It is the world’s deadliest migration route due
to factors that include the length of the journey, which can
take days; increasingly dangerous smuggling patterns, gaps
in search-and-rescue capacity and restrictions on the work
of NGOs saving lives at sea.
Furthermore, migrants
often make the crossing in unseaworthy, overloaded
inflatable boats. As many of these vessels can be launched
at one time, this can complicate search and rescue
efforts.
More information can be found here.
