50 refugees rescued in tragic shipwreck off Libya

Some 50 refugees have been rescued from a tragic shipwreck, off the coast of Libya, international media report.

According to Italian media, the boat was carrying over a hundred passengers when it capsized around 35 miles off the Libyan coast.

The Italian coastguard has already rescued 50 of the refugees, but there are fears that up to 80 refugees have lost their lives in the incident.

Last Wednesday five people lost their lives when a large fishing boat capsized in the Mediterranean. It is estimated that around 7,000 people have died trying to reach Europe in the past two years, and fears of increased voyages from war-torn Libya have mounted since the EU agreed to send a number of refugees who make it to Greek shores, back to Turkey. For each Syrian among those returned, the EU is however required to accept another Syrian directly from Turkish refugee camps in a “one-for-one” exchange.