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Italian rescuers search for missing migrants after boat sinks
Ongoing search for missing migrants as boat sinks off the coast the Italian island of Lampedusa.
Every year, thousands of migrants make their way to Lampedusa.
A boat carrying irregular migrants sank off the coast of Lampedusa last night, Italian news agency ANSA reported. According to reports, Italian rescuers were searching for missing persons after saving around 54 people from the sea.
The Italian coastguards along with customs police and NATO ships are coordinating the search.
Some survivors said there had been about 100 people on board, apparently Tunisians, but the exact number of missing was not yet known.
The fishing boat carrying the migrants sent out a distress signal by satellite phone late Thursday night. It sank about 12 nautical miles off Lampedusa, the Italian island closest to the coast of North Africa.
