News Extra
18 lives lost, 64 people rescued as wooden vessel capsizes
A wooden vessel that departed from Al Zawiya, off the coast of Surman, Libya, earlier today capsized only a few hours into its journey due to high waves. A total of 64 people were rescued and brought safely to shore, while 18 lives were tragically lost.
Among the survivors are 29 Sudanese men, one Sudanese woman, and one Sudanese child; 18 Bangladeshi men; 12 Pakistani men; and three Somali men. Information on the nationalities of the deceased is not available at this stage.
This latest shipwreck is a stark reminder of the grave dangers faced by people undertaking perilous sea journeys in search of safety and opportunity. The Central Mediterranean route remains one of the world’s deadliest migration corridors, with 1,046 deaths and disappearances recorded by IOM’s Missing Migrants Project since the beginning of 2025, 527 of which occurred off the coast of Libya.