TUNIS: Two unidentified bodies were recovered off Tunisia’s eastern coast after a migrant boat capsized, local media reported on Friday, with one person still missing and 28 rescued.
Most of the passengers were Tunisian, according to the reports, which said that the boat had set sail from Teboulba, a coastal town some 180 kilometers south of the capital Tunis.
Tunisia and neighboring Libya have become key departure points for migrants, often from other African countries, who risk perilous Mediterranean Sea journeys in the hopes of reaching better lives in Europe.
Each year, tens of thousands of people attempt to make the crossing. Italy, whose Lampedusa Island is only 150 kilometers (90 miles) from Tunisia, is often their first port of call.
In late October, the bodies of 15 people believed to be migrants were recovered by authorities in Monastir, eastern Tunisia.
And in late September, 36 would-be migrants — mainly Tunisians — were rescued off Bizerte in northern Tunisia.
Since January 1, at least 103 makeshift boats have capsized and 341 bodies have been recovered off Tunisia’s coast, according to the interior ministry.
More than 1,300 people died or disappeared last year in shipwrecks off the North African country, according to the Tunisian FTDES rights group.
The International Organization for Migration has said that more than 30,309 migrants have died in the Mediterranean in the past decade, including more than 3,000 last year.
2 migrants dead, one missing off Tunisia: reports
https://arab.news/bkm3f
2 migrants dead, one missing off Tunisia: reports
- Tunisia and neighboring Libya have become key departure points for migrants
- Each year, tens of thousands of people attempt to make the crossing
Britain says it and France bombed suspected Daesh arms dump in Syria
- Western aircraft have been conducting patrols to stop a resurgence of the Daesh militant group that ruled parts of Syria until 2019
LONDON: Britain’s and France’s air forces conducted a joint operation on Saturday evening to bomb a suspected underground arms cache previously used by the Daesh group in Syria, Britain’s defense ministry said.
Western aircraft have been conducting patrols to stop a resurgence of the Daesh militant group that ruled parts of Syria until 2019. Intelligence analysis identified an underground facility believed to be used to store weapons and explosives in mountains north of Palmyra, Britain said.
“Our aircraft used Paveway IV guided bombs to target a number of access tunnels down to the facility; whilst detailed assessment is now underway, initial indications are that the target was engaged successfully,” Britain’s defense ministry said in a statement.
Britain said the area was “devoid of any civilian habitation” before the attack and that all its aircraft had returned safely.
“This action shows our UK leadership, and determination to stand shoulder to shoulder with our allies, to stamp out any resurgence of Daesh and their dangerous and violent ideologies in the Middle East,” British Defense Secretary John Healey said, referring to Daesh by an alternative name.
Britain said it used Typhoon FGR4 combat jets to bomb the target, supported by a Voyager refueling tanker.
