Many Nigerians and other African nationalities are feared de.ad after a rubber boat carrying migrants capsized off the coast of Libya
The accident has left at least 53 people de.ad or missing.
This was disclosed by the International Organisation for Migration in a post on its website.
It said the vessel, which was conveying 55 migrants and refugees of various African nationalities, overturned north of Zuwara, Libya, on Friday.
The IOM said only two Nigerian women were rescued during a search-and-rescue operation conducted by Libyan authorities.
According to IOM, one of the survivors reported losing her husband in the incident, while the other said she lost her two babies when the boat capsized.
“IOM mourns the loss of life in yet another de.adly incident along the Central Mediterranean route,” the organisation said, adding that its teams provided emergency medical assistance to the survivors upon disembarkation in coordination with relevant authorities.
Survivor accounts revealed that the boat departed Al-Zawiya, Libya, at about 11:00 p.m. on February 5. Approximately six hours into the journey, the vessel began taking in water before capsizing.
According to the IOM’s Missing Migrants Project, more than 1,300 migrants have gone missing along the Central Mediterranean route in 2025.
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