A boat carrying 86 distressed migrants is at severe risk of sinking between Libya and the Italian island of Lampedusa, according to the ‘Watch The Med’ (WTM) organisation.
In a statement, the organisation announced that it was contacted by this boat. It urged Libyan and Italian officials not to allow them to drown.
The organisation pointed out that they have managed to talk to the Libyan Coastguard, who said they are aware of the case, but no rescue has been sent. “We are still in contact with the people in distress. They are panicking, with no water, food, & little hope of rescue,” the statement read.
German humanitarian organisation Sea-Eye said on Saturday that its rescue ship, Alan Kurdi, had picked up 133 migrants from three different boats stranded in the southern Mediterranean.
According to a press release by Sea-Eye, the Alan Kurdi rescue vessel spotted an overloaded rubber dinghy, carrying 90 people on Saturday. Captain Joachim Ebeling informed German and Libyan authorities, but did not receive any response. Libya has emerged as a major transit point for migrants fleeing to Europe.
In recent years, the EU has partnered with Libya’s Coastguard, and other local groups to stem the dangerous sea crossings. Rights groups say these policies leave migrants at the mercy of armed groups, or confined in squalid detention centres rife with abuses.