The IOM says 42 migrants are missing and presumed dead after a boat capsized off Libya; seven men were rescued after six days adrift. The vessel left Zuwara on November 3 with 47 men and two women before engine failure and capsizing. The missing are mainly from Sudan, Somalia, Cameroon and Nigeria, and survivors were treated and transferred to Tripoli. The IOM, UNHCR and EU officials called for stronger cooperation, safer migration routes and improved search-and-rescue efforts, while MSF has resumed central Mediterranean rescue missions.
42 Presumed Dead After Migrant Boat Capsizes Off Libya; Seven Rescued After Six Days Adrift
The IOM says 42 migrants are missing and presumed dead after a boat capsized off Libya; seven men were rescued after six days adrift. The vessel left Zuwara on November 3 with 47 men and two women before engine failure and capsizing. The missing are mainly from Sudan, Somalia, Cameroon and Nigeria, and survivors were treated and transferred to Tripoli. The IOM, UNHCR and EU officials called for stronger cooperation, safer migration routes and improved search-and-rescue efforts, while MSF has resumed central Mediterranean rescue missions.
08:15 PM, 11/12/2025Society
42 presumed dead after migrant boat capsizes off Libya
The United Nations' International Organization for Migration (IOM) said on Wednesday that 42 migrants are missing and presumed dead after a boat capsized off the Libyan coast last week. Seven men were rescued after drifting at sea for six days.
The vessel departed Zuwara, west of Tripoli, on November 3 carrying 47 men and two women. According to the IOM, high waves caused the engine to fail about six hours into the voyage and the boat subsequently capsized, throwing all passengers into the sea.
Libyan authorities carried out a search-and-rescue operation on Saturday near the Al Buri oil field. Only seven survivors were recovered — four from Sudan, two from Nigeria and one from Cameroon — and were taken ashore in Tripoli where IOM teams provided emergency medical care, food and water.
"According to survivors, some people wore life jackets while others clung to the upturned vessel," an IOM spokesman told AFP.
The IOM reported that 42 people remain unaccounted for and are presumed dead: 29 from Sudan, eight from Somalia, three from Cameroon and two from Nigeria. Survivors were described as being in reasonably good condition given their ordeal, though several suffered skin irritation from prolonged exposure to salt water.
Rising death toll and calls for action
More than 1,000 migrants have died this year attempting the central Mediterranean crossing between North Africa and southern Europe, according to IOM figures. The UN refugee agency (UNHCR) estimates that over 1,700 people have died or are missing this year on the wider Mediterranean and West Africa Atlantic routes. Since 2014, roughly 33,000 migrants are believed to have died or gone missing in the Mediterranean, the IOM's Missing Migrants Project says.
The IOM and European officials have urged strengthened regional cooperation, expanded safe and regular migration channels, and more effective search-and-rescue operations to prevent further loss of life. A European Commission spokesperson emphasized the need to "intensify joint efforts with our partners, including Libya, to prevent such dangerous journeys and to combat the criminal networks of migrant smugglers that put lives at risk."
MSF resumes rescue missions
Doctors Without Borders (MSF) announced it has resumed search-and-rescue operations in the central Mediterranean after pausing activities in December 2024. MSF's new vessel, Oyvon, formerly served as an ambulance ship in Norway. The organisation said it switched to a smaller, faster vessel in response to what it described as restrictive measures affecting its earlier, larger rescue ship.
MSF stated the crew includes a doctor and a nurse able to treat hypothermia, fuel inhalation and fuel burns, as well as injuries linked to abuse and detention in Libya. Juan Matias Gil, MSF's search-and-rescue representative, said the organisation returned to "carry out the duty of rescue for those in distress at sea, forced onto unseaworthy boats after enduring deplorable and inhumane conditions in Libya."
Humanitarian context
This tragedy highlights ongoing risks faced by migrants attempting the central Mediterranean crossing. Humanitarian agencies continue to call for increased search-and-rescue capacity, legal pathways for migration, and stronger measures to dismantle smuggling networks that profit from putting people at sea in unsafe vessels.