90 feared dead off Libyan coast as migrant boat capsizes

Ninety migrants are feared to have lost their lives after a boat capsized off Libya’s coast, the UN’s migration agency has said.

Three survivors reported that most of those who drowned were Pakistani nationals.

International Organisation for Migration spokesperson Olivia Headon said that ten bodies has washed ashore close to Zuwara, Libya, eight of whom are thought to be Pakistani, and two Libyan.

Headon told reporters at the UN in Geneva that it is believed that boat became unbalanced, leading to the capsizing.

She maintained that a large share of migrants trying to cross the Mediterranean into Italy are Pakistani.

The EU had reached a deal last year to help Libyan coastguard officials in stopping boats carrying migrants and refugees to Italy.