The Independent | 19.04.2017
Asylum seekers believed to have died of thirst and hunger after boat’s engine broke
Lizzie Dearden
Almost 30 migrants have been found dead in a boat drifting off the coast of Libya as the number of refugees dying in attempts to reach Europe reach record highs.
Fishermen found the bodies of 28 people, including four children, in waters near the smuggling hub of Sabratha after more than 8,300 asylum seekers were rescued over the Easter weekend.
“Their boat stopped in the middle of the water because the engine was broken,” said Ahmaida Khalifa Amsalam, the interior ministry’s security commander.
He said the victims appeared to have died of thirst and hunger after their vessel was left drifting in the Mediterranean.