Two boats capsize near Tunisia, 27 died

At least 27 migrants, including women and children, died after two boats capsized off central Tunisia, with 83 people rescued.

The rescued and dead passengers, who were found off the Kerkennah Islands off central Tunisia, were aiming to reach Europe and were all from sub-Saharan African countries, said head of Civil Defence in the city of Sfax Zied Sdiri.

Search efforts for additional missing passengers are still ongoing, according to the Tunisian National Guard, which manages the coastguard.

Tunisia is a major departure point for irregular migrants aiming to reach Europe, with Italy’s Lampedusa island, located only 150 kilometers (90 miles) away, often serving as their first stop.

Every year, tens of thousands of people attempt the dangerous Mediterranean crossing, a journey made even riskier by poor weather conditions. Recently, there has been an increase in shipwreck incidents:

On December 18, a shipwreck near the city of Sfax claimed the lives of at least 20 migrants from sub-Saharan Africa, with five others still missing.

Earlier, on December 12, the coastguard rescued 27 African migrants near Jebeniana, north of Sfax, but reported 15 others dead or missing.

Since the beginning of the year, the Tunisian human rights group FTDES has counted “between 600 and 700” migrants killed or missing in shipwrecks off Tunisia.

More than 1,300 migrants died or disappeared in 2023.