The United Nations has called for the return of sea rescues in the Mediterranean Sea following Thursday’s boat sick from which up to 150 people are feared dead.
Led by the UN Secretary-General, top officials from the body warn that more lives will be lost in the sea if action is not taken immediately.
The Thursday incident happened after a boat the migrants were travelling in capsized off the Libyan coast, making it the worst tragedy in 2019.
The International Organization for Migrants (IOM) said some 145 survivors had been returned to the Libyan shore.
The boat is believed to have experienced an engine failure before it sank. The survivors reported that some 250 people were on the boat before it capsized.
Guterres said via his Twitter handle that he was “horrified” by the news, and called for “safe, legal routes for migrants and refugees”. His comments were echoed by the head of the UN refugee agency (UNHCR), Filippo Grandi, and the UN children’s fund (UNICEF) chief, Henrietta Fore, both of whom also called for end to the arbitrary detention of refugees and migrants in Libya.
A spokesperson for UNHCR said in a press briefing on Friday that the large loss of life underscores the “terrible urgency” of the agency’s repeated pleas to States to restore sea rescues and “help with alleviating the suffering of the thousands of refugees and migrants caught in the conflict in Libya.”
