70 migrants feared dead after boat capsizes off western town of Zuwara

A boat crowed with dozens of migrants capsized off Libya, and at least 17 people were presumed dead, a U.N. migration official said Monday. It was the latest disaster in the Mediterranean Sea involving migrants seeking a better life in Europe.

The accident happened Sunday night off the western town of Zuwara, said Safa Msehli, a spokeswoman for the International Organisation for Migration.

She said around 70 migrants were on the rubber boat and the Libyan coast guard managed to rescue 51 Egyptians. One body was recovered and at least 16 other migrants were missing and assumed to have drowned, Msehli said.

The capsizing was the latest sea disaster off the Libyan coast involving Europe-bound migrants. Around 80 migrants were presumed dead in two separate shipwrecks off Libya last month.

There has been a spike in crossings and attempted crossings from Libya in recent months. Amnesty International has said that in the first six months of this year, more than 7,000 people intercepted at sea were forcibly returned to detention camps in Libya.

The deadliest shipwreck so far this year took place April 22 off Libya, when 130 people drowned despite the ship sending multiple distress calls.