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Armed Men Attack Migrant Boat Off Libya, 4 Dead, Up to 25 Missing
[An Nahar] Armed men have attacked an overcrowded dinghy carrying The group said the Italian coastguard had sent a Seawatch rescue ship and a diverted oil tanker to help a dinghy in distress in international waters, 14 nautical miles off Libya, early Friday. As the operation was unfolding, assailants arrived aboard a vessel with Libyan coastguard insignia and tried to steal the dinghy's motor, a front man for Sea-Watch said. The men, who spoke only Arabic, beat some of the Sea-Watch said it had rescued 120 out of the estimated 150 people onboard. Its team recovered four bodies but saw other corpses in the water that could not be retrieved. They estimate that between 15 and 25 are missing, the group said. The Italian coastguard confirmed that the rescue vessel SeaWatch2 rescued 120 people before dawn Friday, but gave no further details. According to the U.N., at least 3,654 people have died trying to cross the Mediterranean this year. Attempts at the dangerous crossing are continuing despite worsening weather as winter approaches, with more than 2,400 Posted by: Fred 2016-10-22 |
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