NGO retrieves 11 bodies of presumed migrants from the Mediterranean

The NGO Doctors Without Borders (MSF) said its search and rescue vessel recovered the bodies of 11 people- presumed to be migrants- off the Libyan coast Friday, AFP reports. The German NGO Sea-Watch alerted MSF of the bodies, after its small surveillance airplane Seabird, spotted them in the water earlier in the day. Sea-Watch, which also rescues migrants from the Mediterranean, said "It is unclear whether the bodies discovered off the Libyan coast were 
victims of a previously unknown shipwreck." 

While searching for the bodies, MSF’s vessel sighted a boat and rescued the 20 people aboard, it said. Sea-Watch said Libyan authorities ignored calls from the German NGO to retrieve the bodies when it called with the information.

Libya is a major departure point for migrants trying to reach Europe with the Italian island of Lampedusa being the closest landing point.

Italy’s interior ministry says the number of migrant rivals has plummeted in the first half of 2024 to just under 21,800, down from 53,300 in the same period last year.