By our reporter 10.2.2026
A rubber boat ferrying migrants to Europe from Libya has capsized killing 53 persons, while others remain missing.
According to the International Organisation for Migration, the incident occurred on February 6 off the Libyan coast, two Nigerian women were rescued from the Mediterranean waters. One said she lost her husband, while the other reported that her two babies drowned.
The boat left Al-Zawiya at night on February 5, carrying migrants and refugees from several African countries. Six hours later it started taking water, which led to its capsizing.
IOM said its teams provided emergency medical assistance to the two women after they were brought ashore, describing the incident as another deadly tragedy on the Central Mediterranean migration route.
The agency said at least 375 migrants were reported dead or missing in the area in January alone, many linked to so-called “invisible” shipwrecks during severe weather, with numerous deaths believed to go unrecorded.
According to IOM’s Missing Migrants Project, more than 1,300 migrants went missing on the Central Mediterranean route in 2025. The latest incident brings the number reported dead or missing so far in 2026 to at least 484.
IOM warned that people-smuggling networks continue to exploit migrants by sending them to sea in unsafe boats, and renewed calls for stronger international cooperation and safer, legal migration routes to prevent further loss of life.