Libyan Red Crescent recovers bodies of 74 refugees
Libya’s Red Crescent recovered the bodies of 74 migrants when they washed ashore in northwestern Libya near the town of Zawiya (30 miles west of Tripoli) early Wednesday morning. The Red Crescent indicated there were many more casualties, but that the rough seas prevented them from recovering the rest of the bodies.
Officials estimate there were some 150 refugees on board the vessel, which they believe was bound for Europe when it stopped functioning. A lone survivor--a middle-aged, African male--was rescued, comatose, from a torn rubber dinghy in the sea.
Taha K. Sultan Elbarghathi, a spokesperson for the Red Crescent, told CNN the drowned were all African men of varying ages. He noted more African migrants are now attempting the hazardous central Mediterranean route to Europe, departing from the Libyan coast.
According to Elbarghathi, the Zawiya team had never recovered so many bodies in a single incident. He believes the men fell prey to perilous sea conditions over the weekend. “We don’t know the exact time the boat capsized but the boat did not totally sink,” Elbarghathi told CNN. “One of the sides has lost its air.”
Read more: https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2017/02/23/liby-f23.html
