Migrant Tragedy Off Libyan Coast
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) announced on Monday that 53 migrants, including two infants, have perished or are missing after a rubber boat carrying 55 people capsized off the coast of Libya. In November last year, at least four migrants drowned off the coast of Al-Khoms (approximately 118 kilometers east of the capital, Tripoli), following the overturning of two boats carrying 95 migrants. Since the fall of Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, Libya has become a major transit route for migrants fleeing conflict and poverty, seeking to reach Europe via the Mediterranean Sea.
