19 dead, 42 missing after migrant boat sinks off Libyan coast

The bodies of 19 people were recovered after the rubber migrant boat they were in sank off the eastern Libyan coast, the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) said on Friday.

The boat, which was carrying more than 70 Sudanese and South Sudanese nationals, sailed on 9th September from a beach near the town of Kambout and sank the same day, an IOM spokesperson said.

A total of 14 people were rescued five days later, while 42 others remain missing, the IOM said. It was unclear how those rescued managed to survive at sea during that time.

Libya has been a main transit point for migrants trying to reach Europe, fleeing war and poverty in Africa and the Middle East.