27 migrants die off Tunisia

Twenty-seven migrants died and 83 were rescued after two boats capsized off central Tunisia, aiming for Europe.

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TUNIS:

Twenty-seven migrants, including women and children, died after two boats capsized off central Tunisia, with 83 people rescued, a civil defence official told AFP on Thursday.

The rescued and dead passengers, who were found off the Kerkennah Islands off central Tunisia, were aiming to reach Europe and were all from sub-Saharan African countries, said Zied Sdiri, head of civil defence in the city of Sfax.

Searches were still underway for other possible missing passengers, according to the Tunisian National Guard, which oversees the coastguard.

Tunisia is a key departure point for irregular migrants seeking to reach Europe with Italy, whose island of Lampedusa is only 150 kilometres (90 miles) from Tunisia, often their first port of call.

Each year, tens of thousands of people attempt the perilous Mediterranean crossing, which has seen a spate of recent shipwrecks, with the dangers exacerbated by bad weather.