At least 113 people died in four shipwrecks between Libya and Italy at the weekend as the crossing becomes the preferred sea route for migrants to Europe, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said yesterday.
Migrants from West Africa, especially Nigerians, and the Horn of Africa dominate the Libya-Italy route.
IOM could however not specify the number of Nigerians involved in the mishaps.
With the closing of land routes in the Balkans and a recent deal under which Greece sends migrants back to Turkey, Italian officials have said they expect more people to try to make this longer and much more dangerous crossing from Libya.
In one of four incidents, an Italian merchant ship rescued 26 people off the coast of Libya in rough seas while others were feared missing, Italy’s Coast Guard said on Saturday.
IOM, citing survivor testimony, said 84 people appeared to be missing from that wreck, while at least 29 drowned in two other attempted crossings in rubber dinghies off Sicily. It was still investigating a fourth incident.
“Just since Friday we know of four shipwrecks and 113 people killed, just off Libya,” IOM spokesman Joel Millman said at a news briefing.
He said, “It is becoming the preferred route. So therefore we are very mindful of what could be coming in the next few months.
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