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2 migrants dead, one missing off Tunisia: reports

2 migrants dead, one missing off Tunisia: reports
Migrants are seen on board of boats during a rescue operation in the international waters of the central Mediterranean by members of the “Doctors without Borders,” MSF, non-profit organization on board of the Geo Barents rescue ship, Nov.28, 2024. (AP)
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Updated 30 November 2024

2 migrants dead, one missing off Tunisia: reports

2 migrants dead, one missing off Tunisia: reports
  • Tunisia and neighboring Libya have become key departure points for migrants
  • Each year, tens of thousands of people attempt to make the crossing

TUNIS: Two unidentified bodies were recovered off Tunisia’s eastern coast after a migrant boat capsized, local media reported on Friday, with one person still missing and 28 rescued.
Most of the passengers were Tunisian, according to the reports, which said that the boat had set sail from Teboulba, a coastal town some 180 kilometers south of the capital Tunis.
Tunisia and neighboring Libya have become key departure points for migrants, often from other African countries, who risk perilous Mediterranean Sea journeys in the hopes of reaching better lives in Europe.
Each year, tens of thousands of people attempt to make the crossing. Italy, whose Lampedusa Island is only 150 kilometers (90 miles) from Tunisia, is often their first port of call.
In late October, the bodies of 15 people believed to be migrants were recovered by authorities in Monastir, eastern Tunisia.
And in late September, 36 would-be migrants — mainly Tunisians — were rescued off Bizerte in northern Tunisia.
Since January 1, at least 103 makeshift boats have capsized and 341 bodies have been recovered off Tunisia’s coast, according to the interior ministry.
More than 1,300 people died or disappeared last year in shipwrecks off the North African country, according to the Tunisian FTDES rights group.
The International Organization for Migration has said that more than 30,309 migrants have died in the Mediterranean in the past decade, including more than 3,000 last year.


UN Security Council to discuss Yemen crisis amid Houthi detentions

UN Security Council to discuss Yemen crisis amid Houthi detentions
Updated 5 sec ago

UN Security Council to discuss Yemen crisis amid Houthi detentions

UN Security Council to discuss Yemen crisis amid Houthi detentions
  • The closed session comes after 59 UN staff remain were detained by the Houthis

DUBAI: The UN Security Council will hold closed-door consultations on Yemen on Thursday, focusing on the arbitrary detention of UN personnel by the Houthis.

The closed session comes after 59 UN staff remain were detained following accusations by Houthi leader Abdul-Malik Al-Houthi that UN personnel and humanitarian agencies were spying for Israel and the US, claims the UN has denied.

The detentions and raids on UN premises have raised serious concerns about the safety of UN operations and humanitarian access in Houthi-controlled areas.

The meeting will be briefed by UN Special Envoy Hans Grundberg and Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Joyce Msuya.

Grundberg has conducted extensive diplomatic efforts to secure the immediate release of detained personnel, meeting officials in Oman, Bahrain, the UAE and ֱ, as well as Houthi negotiators and representatives of the Yemeni government.

His discussions have emphasized that arbitrary detentions undermine UN aid delivery and political mediation efforts.

Council members are expected to strongly condemn the detentions, demand the unconditional release of all detainees, and stress that the Houthis respect international humanitarian law.

The briefing is also expected to cover the broader humanitarian crisis in Yemen, including alarming levels of food insecurity, and efforts to advance a sustainable, UN-led political settlement to the conflict.