Up to 700 people were feared drowned Sunday after an overcrowded boat smuggling them to Europe capsized off Libya in the latest and deadliest in a long list of migrant disasters in the Mediterranean. Italy's coastguard, which was co-ordinating the search for survivors and bodies, said only 28 people had survived a wreck that triggered fresh calls from Pope Francis and others for European leaders to act over what many see as an avoidable loss of life.
Survivors' testimonies suggested there had been about 700 people on board the 20-metre (70-foot) fishing boat when it keeled over in darkness overnight, officials said.
"It seems we are looking at the worst massacre ever seen in the Mediterranean," UNHCR spokeswoman Carlotta Sami said.
The European Union announced an emergency meeting of foreign and interior ministers to discuss what Amnesty International blasted as a predictable "man-made tragedy".
Coastal authorities in Italy and Malta picked up a distress signal from the stricken vessel around midnight (2200 GMT) on Saturday, when it was about 70 miles (126 km) off the Libyan coast and 110 miles (177 km) south of the Italian island of Lampedusa.
The Italian coastguard instructed a nearby merchant ship to provide assistance and it was when the Portuguese-registered King Jacob arrived at the scene that the fishing boat capsized, most likely as a result of the terrified passengers stampeding to one side in their desperation to get off, the UNHCR's Sami said.
A total of 17 boats scoured the area for survivors on Sunday but only 24 bodies had been recovered by late afternoon, the coastguard said.
EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini, a former Italian foreign minister, said Sunday's events were a stain on Europe's conscience.
Comments
Comments are closed.