In this photo taken on June 15, 2020, a forensic scientist at a morgue in the coastal city of Sfax prepares to take a DNA sample from the body of one of the 52 African migrants, who died at sea when their boat capsized near Tunisia's Kerkennah islands. (PHOTO / AFP)
TUNIS – Seven more bodies believed to be of migrants who drowned in a shipwreck off Tunisia have washed ashore, local authorities said on Monday, bringing the confirmed death toll to 11, with 44 still missing and only two rescued.
On Sunday a judicial official said the migrants aboard the boat, which sank off Tunisia's Kerkennah island near the port of Sfax, were from sub-Saharan African countries.
From Jan 1 to July 20 this year, the Tunisian coast guard recovered 901 bodies of drowned migrants off its coast, an unprecedented number
From Jan 1 to July 20 this year, the Tunisian coast guard recovered 901 bodies of drowned migrants off its coast, an unprecedented number.
The North African country is facing a record wave of migration this year and frequent catastrophes involving boats heading to the Italian coast.
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Tunisia has replaced Libya as the region's main departure point for people fleeing poverty and conflict in Africa and the Middle East in hopes of a better life in Europe.
