AN UNKNOWN number of African migrants, perhaps as many as 250, are believed to have drowned off the Libyan coast on Monday following the sinking of at least one "migrant" boat, which was almost certainly headed for Italy, writes PADDY AGNEWin Bari
A spokesperson for the Geneva-based International Organisation for Migration (IOM) said yesterday the full picture on this latest migrant tragedy is as yet unclear but confirmed at least one boat with more than 250 people on board had sunk about 30km (19 miles) off the Libyan coast.
News sources in Libya report that at least three boats full of Egyptian, Tunisian and Palestinian migrants set off for Italy last Sunday. All three boats soon got into difficulty in high winds, with one sinking and another rescued and towed to safety in Tripoli. The fate of the third boat is not clear.
Italian news agency Ansa reported that there were approximately 350 migrants on the boat rescued by an Italian tanker that normally serves oil rigs based off the Libyan coast. All those on board returned safely to Tripoli.
Although the IOM confirmed yesterday that 21 bodies had been found, both the migration organisation and Libyan media sources believe the death toll will be much higher. The IOM believes that there were as many as 250 people on the boat that sank, and there are fears that a second boat may also have sunk.
Tripoli-based IOM official Laurence Hart said yesterday he feared as many as 500 migrants could be lost. “There is still a slim chance that some of these people are going to be rescued but the casualties are going to be very high.”
This latest migrant tragedy comes just two days after 400 “boat people” from North Africa landed on the Eastern coast of Sicily, while another 222 landed on the tiny Mediterranean island of Lampedusa, approximately halfway between Libya and Italy.
The Italian interior ministry and IOM officials expect that, with the arrival of spring and milder weather, trafficking in boat people will sharply increase.
Along with Spain and Malta, Italy is a favourite landing point in the European Union for desperate migrants who come from all over Africa but who usually set out on the last leg of their journey from the coasts of Morocco, Libya or Tunisia.
Many of these migrants have already undergone a long and dangerous trek from their home countries to make it to the north African coast.
The IOM estimates that as many as 33,000 migrants landed on Lampedusa last year alone while the Italian interior ministry estimates that more than 37,000 illegal immigrants – a 75 per cent rise on 2007 – landed on the coasts of Italy last year. An unknown number of migrants, however, have drowned over the years in an attempt to reach Italy.
On Monday Italian interior minister Roberto Maroni said Italy and Libya, under the terms of an agreement signed last August, will soon launch joint sea patrols aimed at stopping the heavy influx of illegal immigrants.
Mr Maroni said the patrols will begin on May 15th, a day he hopes will “mark the end” of illegal migration into Italy from north Africa. The IOM estimates that economic migrants make up no less than 3 per cent of the world’s population, or approximately 200 million people.