Five dead, Seven missing as boat sinks off Tunisia

Tunisia, The Gulf Observer: At least five asylum seekers died and seven others are missing after their Europe-bound boat sank off Tunisia’s Mediterranean coast, a judicial official in the city of Sfax has said.

The boat, carrying “35 people, most of them Tunisians” including women and children, went down “shortly after departing from the coast of Sidi Mansour” near Sfax, said court spokesperson Faouzi Masmoudi.

“Twenty-three people have been rescued,” he added.

The boat sank “less than an hour after departure”, according to the spokesperson.

Last week judicial officials reported the deaths of at least 11 irregular migrants in a shipwreck off Sfax, as the North African country sees a spike in attempted sea crossings.

The eastern Tunisian port city is located about 130 kilometre from the Italian island of Lampedusa.

The court has launched an investigation into the latest shipwreck, Masmoudi said, as search operations were under way.

More than 1,800 people have died this year in shipwrecks on the central Mediterranean migration route, more than twice as many as last year, according to the International Organization for Migration.