At least 50 Sudanese refugees died off eastern Libya’s coast when their boat caught fire, a spokesperson for the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) told AFP on Wednesday.
The IOM confirmed that the tragedy occurred on Sunday when a rubber boat carrying 75 Sudanese refugees caught fire off Tobruk while heading to Greece. “At least 50 lives were lost,” the spokesperson said.
The IOM added in a post on X that its team provided urgent medical care to the 24 survivors, though it did not specify the ages or genders of those on board, nor whether one person remained missing.
Libya remains a central transit route for migrants attempting to cross the Mediterranean. According to the IOM, between 1 January and 13 September, at least 456 people died and 420 were reported missing along the central Mediterranean route.
This year alone, Libyan authorities intercepted and returned 17,402 migrants, including 1,516 women and 586 children.
Conflict in neighbouring Sudan has displaced over 140,000 refugees into Libya in the past two years, nearly doubling their population in the country. Many endure near-slavery conditions before risking the perilous sea journey to Europe.
The IOM regards the central Mediterranean as one of the deadliest migration routes. In 2024, 2,573 people died attempting the crossing.
Libya’s enduring instability since the 2011 NATO-backed uprising that ousted Muammar Kadhafi has allowed smugglers and traffickers to thrive, leading to widespread abuses, including slavery and extortion.