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5d ago

Three Sudanese Sisters Found Dead as RESQSHIP Rescues 65 From Mediterranean Dinghy

An Alarm Phone alert guided rescuers to a dangerously overcrowded dinghy that had departed Libya overnight.

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LAMPEDUSA, ITALY - MAY 24: Refugees and migrants put on life jackets distributed by rescue crews of the Migrant Offshore Aid Station (MOAS) 'Phoenix' vessel on May 24, 2017 off Lampedusa, Italy. The boat, one of three in the area later capsized killing more than 30 people, crewmembers from the 'Phoenix' rescued 603 people. Numbers of refugees and migrants attempting the dangerous central Mediterranean crossing from Libya to Italy has risen since the same time last year with more than 43,000 people recorded so far in 2017. In an attempt to slow the flow of migrants Italy recently signed a deal with Libya, Chad and Niger outlining a plan to increase border controls and add new reception centers in the African nations, which are key transit points for migrants heading to Italy. MOAS is a Malta based NGO dedicated to providing professional search-and-rescue assistance to refugees and migrants in distress at sea. Since the start of the year MOAS have rescued and assisted 3572 people and are currently patrolling and running rescue operations in international waters off the coast of Libya. (Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images)
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Overview

  • RESQSHIP’s vessel Nadir rescued about 65 people from a partially deflated rubber boat in international waters north of Libya.
  • The sisters, ages 9, 11 and 17, were discovered inside the flooded dinghy, and medical teams were unable to revive them.
  • Survivors, including the girls’ mother and brother, were brought to Lampedusa, with Italian coast guard units evacuating several urgent medical cases.
  • RESQSHIP said the dinghy left Zuwara overnight on Friday and reported one person missing after a fall overboard earlier in the crossing.
  • In a separate operation, another NGO rescued more than 50 people while a second boat was intercepted by the Libyan coast guard, as IOM data show over 30,000 deaths on Mediterranean routes since 2014.