One hundred and twelve bodies have been recovered after a boat carrying hundreds of migrants capsized off the coast of Egypt this week.
Khaled Megahed, spokesman of the Egyptian health ministry, told reporters that 55 bodies were found, bringing the number of the dead victims to 112 until now.
“The toll is likely to increase as the search operations continue,” he said.
The bodies retrieved were those of Egyptians, other Arab nationals and Africans.
Fifty-seven other bodies were recovered in the past two days after the boat sank on Wednesday off the Egyptian coastal town of Rosetta.
However, reports gave conflicting figures for the exact number of people aboard the boat, while one report gave an estimate of 400, another said the vessel was carrying at least 300 people.
The boat passengers included Egyptians, Syrians, Sudanese nationals, Somalis and Eritreans.
Authorities succeeded in rescuing 163 people, including 123 Egyptians, from the accident.
In recent years, Egypt has seen an increase in migrants trying to travel across the Mediterranean Sea to Europe.
Regional turmoil and high unemployment rates are said to be the main factors behind the risky journeys.
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