At least 30 people are missing in the Mediterranean after a migrant boat from Libya capsized in bad weather. Seventeen people have been rescued from the water so far, the Italian coastguard reports, according to international news agencies. Rescue organizations fear for the lives of the missing. The boat would have sailed towards Italy, according to the NGO Mediterranea Saving Humans, but capsized about 180 kilometers northwest of the Libyan city of Benghazi on Sunday morning.
Rescue operations are still underway in the area, supported by cargo ships in the area and EU border service Frontex. Alarm Phone, an organization that picks up distress calls from migrant ships, said authorities had already been warned on Saturday that the boat with nearly 50 people on board had to be rescued immediately. The Italian Coast Guard said on Sunday that the capsizing occurred outside Italy’s search and rescue zone.
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Migration discussion in Italy
After the fatal shipwreck of a migrant boat off the Italian coast two weeks ago, Italy’s refugee rescue apparatus came under scrutiny. On February 26, nearly 80 people were killed when an overcrowded fishing sloop broke in two and sank. Fourteen children, including a baby, were among the dead. That disaster sharpened the migrant discussion in Italian politics again.
The Meloni government has a tough migration policy, which has been denounced by opposition members. For example, a law was passed at the end of last year that prohibits NGOs from continuing to search for other migrants at sea after a rescue operation. The number of migrants arriving in Italy, especially from North Africa, is on the rise this year. On March 10 this year, some 17,600 people had already reached the country, compared to 6,000 around the same time last year. Hundreds of people have also died trying to cross the Mediterranean to Europe.